Open Up to Me
by VampireGirl Avia
Summary: Edward feels lonely.Everyone he knows,is happy and in love. But on a hunting trip he finds a girl, crying terribly. Who is she? Why is she here? What must he do?
1. Chapter 1

I don't own the characters. everything belongs to S. Meyer.

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**Chapter 1**

Epov

I was staring out the window, looking at the forest, surrounding my house over and over again. The same boring, green trees. Guardians, storytellers of the little city Forks.  
But after two years, there was nothing left for me to discover here. There was not so much to learn about this little village. To be completely honest, it was pretty boring.

Yet, it was the perfect place for us to stay. Forks was known as a place where the sun almost never shine. So, in this little town, we could live almost as normal people.  
As vampires, we didn't have an easy life. Trying to live like normal citizens, controlling our thirst, keeping a low profile. I'm telling you, living a cursed life wasn't what I wished for.

But lately, I felt so strange, like there was something missing in my life. And I had a little suspicion what the hole in my chest meant.  
I was surrounded with happiness, joy and above all things love. Carlisle and Esme, Alice and Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett. All of them were still head over heels, even after so many years. Three perfect couples living under the same roof as me.

But I was after 108 years still single. I searched everywhere around the world, looking for a girl that could take my breath away, create butterflies in my stomach, let everything else in de world disappear when she was with me. Someone who was worth living for.

But no one could capture my silent, frozen heart. Nobody gave me the feeling of "I'll do anything for you".  
They were all the same. Little dolls that only thought about their appearances and that the world was theirs. And one girl was more determent to seduce me than the other. Some girls just don't understand the word 'no'. It took me years to convince Tanya that I wasn't interested in her. Her methods, they still gave me the creeps.

"Edward! Oh, Edward!" I heard outside my door.

Alice, my little baby sister, came bounding thought my door. Like usually there was a big smile painted on her petite face. Alice was truly the most enthusiastic person I ever met. It was almost impossible that such a little pixie could contain so much energy. Sometimes I wondered how Jasper could manage living with her.

"You are over thinking again. If you weren't a vampire, you would definitely have wrinkles. "

"Luckily, I am a vampire. About what was I thinking this time?"

"How should I know! You're the one who can read minds." She was always such a smartass.

"For what purpose do I own this pleasure, your highness?"

"The guys, Rosalie and I are going to hunt tonight. Emmett has a big appetite for grizzly and he doesn't want to wait anymore. I was just wondering if you would join us."

I signed. I wasn't really in the mood for a hunting trip. I went hunting just a couple of days ago. But I knew that Alice wanted me to come and she would eventually find an excuse to get me out of the house. She was even capable of messing around with my music collection. So what was the point in arguing?

_"_Come on. It's going to be so much fun." Alive said. But her mind gave me another message.

"**_You know I will find a way. You can't escape me, brother."  
_**_  
_I laughed at her playful treat. Especially with those pleading eyes of hers, it was hilarious. Nobody could resist her when she looked at you like a beating puppy.

"Stop looking at me like that. Like you don't already know my answer."

She squealed in delight, made a little happy dance and yelled: "I told you he would go, Jasper! Don't you ever doubt me again! "

Downstairs a chuckle was heard.  
She gave me a hug and left my room. 'Oh, this going to be so much fun.'  
...

We were running though the woods, somewhere around the Canadian border. Emmett and Rosalie had already separated from us as Emm had discovered the scent of a bear. When that guy was hungry, you better stayed out of his way.

Alice and Jasper were running ahead of me, hands intertwined. It made me a bit uncomfortable, seeing them so in love. But I wasn't jealous, far from it. I was happy for them. They made the perfect couple and I was content that Alice had found Jasper.

But I kept my distance, not wanting to disturb their little bubble of love.  
Instead of following them to the north, I went west. I wasn't really hungry but maybe an elk would do me good. I ran thought the forest, passing green colored trees, blue streams, leafs falling down slowly by the fresh fall wind.

I loved running. It gave me a sort feeling of freedom. A way to lose all the energy that I had to hold back. During the day, we had to act like normal people and contain our vampire speed and strength. So we needed a sort of relief otherwise we would combust.

It also kept my mind off of things. It was the easiest way for me to block the voices inside my head. Because every now and then, it really was a pain in the ass. I could hear every thought of every person around me. And sometimes there were thoughts that weren't meant for me to hear. It really was embarrassing at times. But I learned to live with it.

Suddenly I heard a strange noise not so far from me. I slowed down my pass and concentrated on the noise. It sounded like crying, a person crying. But I didn't smell a human for miles. It didn't make any sense. Carefully I made my way to the source of the sound.  
A few miles away, I found my person.

It was a girl, all curled up against a tree. She sobbed terribly, crying her heart out. I couldn't see her face as it was hidden under her arms. The only thing that I could detect was that she had long, brown hair and that her clothes were a total mess. She was completely covered in mud and her trousers and shirt were ripped.  
Alice would call it a disaster.

I started to approach her, very slowly. I didn't want to startle her. She looked so delicate, so beaten up. Like she had been though something terrible.

Carefully I stretched my hand out and whispered: "Excuse miss, can I…"

That was all I could manage to say. Suddenly her whole body stiffened, her head fell back and she started screaming uncontrollably.

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**So, this was my first chapter. I hope you liked it.**  
**Please review. It would help me so much.**

**XXX**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Epov

Those screams, they were terrible. It felt like knifes going right through my body.  
I tried to calm her down. However, when I touched her shoulder, it only made it worse.  
The girl started screaming louder and tried to run away. But she tripped over a root of a tree. The girl curled herself up again and buried her face under her crossed arms. She was so scared of me.

"**Edward, what's happening?"** I heard Alice thinking.  
Alice had found Emmett and Rosalie and they were coming towards us. She had heard the screams as well.

"**Edward, what the f*ck is that noise**_?"_ Rosalie yelled in her mind.

_"_**He's probably playing with his prey. He's found himself a sissy mountain lion**_."  
_  
Emmett always had the stupidest ideas.  
A few minutes later, my brothers and sisters arrived. Their eyes fell immediately on the sobbing girl. They were transfixed.

_"_**Who is that?**_"  
"_**What is that?**_"  
"_**What is a human doing here?**_"  
"_**What have you done to her?"**

All their thoughts were running through my mind. And It started to give me a headache.

"Hey, can you all just shut up. Please!"  
Alice came standing beside me.

"Who is she, Edward ? Why is she crying?"

"I don't know who she is. She was already crying before I found her. I heard her crying and I came, seeing if she needed help."  
Alice stared at me, raising her eyebrows.

"What do you mean? You don't know who she is? Can't you read her mind?"

I stared at her. I was so shocked by the reaction of the girl that I didn't notice her thoughts. I looked at the girl, trying to steal a quick look into her thoughts. But it was blank. I tried again. It wasn't possible that she wasn't thinking of something at the moment. But again, I couldn't see a thing. This never had happened to me. Turning my head, I looked at Alice.

"_**You can't hear her thoughts, he**__?"  
_  
"No, everything is blank."

"**I didn't see her coming either. I don't understand**_."  
_  
The girl had calmed down but was still weeping in her hands.  
Suddenly Emmett stepped out of the group and approached the girl. I wanted to hold him back but it was already too late.

"Come on, why are you crying? Edward isn't going to hurt you. He is the most passive guy I ever met. It's just boring." Emmett said while he took one of her arms in his hands.

The minute his skin touched hers, she started screaming again. She pushed every bit of air out of her lungs. It really had to be painful to shriek like that all the time. Emmett quickly jumped away, terrified of her reaction.

"I didn't do anything! Really, it was nothing."

"It clearly was something! Why did you touch her?" I screamed.  
I didn't know why I was acting like this, so protective. I never met this girl before. So why did I care?

"I just wanted to calm her. Trying to relax her. I didn't know she would freak out like that."

"Well, she doesn't like to be touch!"

Jasper came standing between us, sending calming waves.

"There's no need to yell at each other. Emmett didn't know. But I suggested that you keep your voices down. She is horrified, terrified to death. If you start yelling again, it will not help her." Jasper said.  
Of course all what he said, was true. But I couldn't believe that Emmett could be so ignorant.

"Maybe I can calm her down." Alice said.  
She looked at me, pleading with her famous puppy eyes.

"**She reacted like that when Emmett and you touched her. Maybe she will be more relaxed when I approach her."  
**  
Maybe this could work. Perhaps she would be more at ease with girls around her. I nodded and stepped away, making room for her.  
Alice took a deep breath and walked little by little towards the girl. When she was close enough, Alice kneeled down and lightly touched the girls shoulder. No screams, no yelling. Only sobbing. Very slowly, the girl lifted her head up.

This was the first time that I saw her face. It was also covered with mud and dirt. But I only could stare into her eyes. They were golden brown. Not as golden as our eyes. There was a little more dark brown in them. They were beautiful. But that also meant that she was a…

"**She's a vampire!"** Emmett shouted in my mind.  
Everybody was surprised.

"**She's not just any vampire. She's one like us. Look at her eyes, Edward" **Jasper thought**.**

"If she's a vampire, why is she crying?" Rosalie said bolt.

We all stared at the little girl. This couldn't be real. A vampire that was able to cry? How was that even possible? Alice relaxed her face and smiled at her.  
"Hey, my name is Alice. These are my brothers and sister. What's your name?"

The girl didn't answer, she just stared at Alice. Maybe she couldn't speak. Carefully Alice took the girls hands in hers. She was shaking terribly but at least she wasn't yelling anymore. Her eyes kept switching between Alice and us; her focus especially on me and Emmett.

"You don't have to be afraid of my brothers. They will not harm you. You can trust us. Where do you come from?" Still no answer.

**"Edward, she is too afraid. We can't just leave her. We need to take her back home."  
**  
"What about Carlisle and Esme?"

"**They will not make a problem about it. Esme will welcome her with open arms and treat her like a royal princess. You know her. Just look at her Edward. We can't just walk away and let her stay here."  
**  
Alice turned her attention back to the girl.  
"We don't live not very far from her. Will you come with us to our home?"

The girls eyes spread open and she started shaking her head uncontrollably no.  
"You don't have to be afraid. We just want to help you. Why don't you want to come?"

She immediately looked at Emmett, Jasper and finally me. Alice got the clue.  
"You don't have to worry about my brothers. They will stay away from you. Me and my sister Rosalie will take care of that."

Alice gestured Rosalie to come a little bit closer. The thoughts of Rosalie told me that she wasn't too happy with our new visitor. But she tried to smile lightly at her, not wanting to make her scream again.

"Hallo, I'm Rosalie. Don't you worry about a thing. If Emmett irritates you again, I will take care of that. Just yell."

I groaned. That wasn't very subtle. Alice and Rosalie helped the girl stand up and Alice took her then in her arms.  
And they quickly disappeared through the trees, back home.

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**Just to be clear, everything in bold, are thoughts.  
****Please review. XXX**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Epov

The whole trip back home, I and my brothers walked behind. Trying to behold a safe distance between us and the girls.

"Edward, what are we going to say when we're back home?" Jasper asked.

"The truth. Maybe Esme can help us to ease her a little bit. When she is calmed down, perhaps she will speak. Tell us what has happened to her."

"**Edward, I'm going to take her directly upstairs. Giving her a bath and fresh clothes. You talk to Carlisle. Explain him what happened. Maybe he will know what to do."**

I could already hear all the possible outfits, hairdos and make-up pallets that Alice would try on the poor girl. She couldn't hide her enthusiasm.

"Don't scare her and don't over exaggerate." I said loud enough for her to hear.  
The guys looked strange at me, wanting an explication.

"Alice. She is going to turn the girl into a doll."  
Jasper and Emmett laughed.

A few minutes later, we arrived at home. Upstairs, I could hear water running and cabinets opening. I searched around, looking for Carlisle.

"**I'm in the living room, son." **I heard.  
And yes, I found my father sitting in his chair, waiting for us. I went to sit in the sofa next to him, followed by my brothers.

"I heard we have a visitor." Carlisle said.

"Yes, Edward found someone in the woods. A girl, I would say about 18 years old." Jasper told him.  
Carlisle nodded and turned his attention to me.

"Why don't you tell me what has happened. Alice and Rosalie just stormed inside, running upstairs immediately. Alice just yelled: don't come upstairs and sent Esme up. Ask Edward. He will explain everything."

"Well, we were hunting around the Canadian border when I suddenly heard someone cry. A little bit further, I found a girl hiding between the trees and bushes. I wanted to calm her but when I touched her, she went…"

"Mad! A real freak. She screamed, yelled. She didn't stop. It was really weird." Emmett interrupted me.

"Thank you for your opinion, Emmett. But I think that Edward should explain the situation."

Carlisle said in a peaceful voice. He really couldn't be irritated by anyone. The equivalent of tranquility, you may say. Carlisle made a gesture for me to continue.

"She doesn't like to be touched. When I and Emmett touched her, she started yelling uncontrollably. But when Alice approached her, she did nothing."

"Maybe she had bad experiences with men. Is this girl one of us?" Carlisle asked.

"We think so."

"What do you mean 'you think so'."  
I glared at Jasper, hoping that he could help me explain. Jasper took the conversation over.

"We didn't smell a human when we were hunting. And when she looked up, we could see her eyes. There were golden brown, just like ours. Maybe a little darker. Otherwise we couldn't detect other vampire qualities as she was completely covered with dirt and hiding herself from us."

"So, then it is clear. She is a vampire, a vegetarian vampire."

"You're forgetting one thing, Carlisle. She can cry. Vampires normally can't cry."

Carlisle signed, leaning his head against his hands. I waited patiently for my father's opinion.  
"Maybe it's a gift of hers. That she can show human emotions."

"Well, it's sure a hell of a gift." Emmett said.

"I'm not certain. It's just a guess. I would like to talk with her."

I looked at Carlisle.  
"I don't know if that's possible. She doesn't speak."

Apov 

I took our girl upstairs to my room. Edward always told me that my room was a house on its own. But he had the tendency to over exaggerate. I thought that it wasn't a big room. It was only a master bedroom, a bathroom complete with bubble bath and luxury shower. Of course I also had a dressing for my clothes. But it wasn't big. I had barely room for my and Jaspers clothes. If I could have my own way, it would be twice as big.

When I opened the door, our girl was really shocked. And for the first time she smiled. It wasn't much, but a little smile appeared on her face.

"Do you like my room?"

She only nodded. Maybe she really couldn't speak. I wished that at least she could tell us her name. It would make everything a lot easier. I placed her on my bed. Rosalie walked the bathroom in, letting the bath fill with hot water.

"I would use the soap with the roses. I think she will like that."

A knock on the door, startled the girl. I first gazed through the doorsill before completely opening the door.

"You don't have to worry. This is our mother, Esme. Esme, this is the girl that we found in the forest."

"Hallo, it is a pleasure to meet you. Oh my, what happened to you?" Esme said.

She only met the girl for a few seconds and already her mother instinct was rising to the surface. Just like I had predicted. She really was a great person. The girl only looked at Esme, her eyes scanning my mother's face. Esme had taken place next to her and had captured the girls hands in hers. The girl didn't even flinch.

"Esme, I must tell you that she doesn't speak. I thought that maybe you could help us with relaxing her a bit."  
She smiled kindly at me.

"Of course. Not a problem dear."  
Rosalie came out of the bathroom.

"The bath is ready."

"Thank you, maybe Esme can help her when you and I search the perfect outfit for her. Will you, Esme?"

Esme was already standing up with the girl next to her.  
"I'm on my way. Come, my dear."

"Thanks mom." I said.  
I really loved her. Always caring, always nursing us, like a real mother. We were so blessed to have her.  
….

"What do you thing? The red dress or the blue one?"

Rosalie looked up from the shoe drawer and examined the two dresses I had picked out for our girl.  
The first one was a red strapless dress with a heart shape neck. It was knee length and had split drape at the front and the back.  
The other one was a blue V-neck halter dress. It had a beautiful waist and was also at knee length.

"I think we should take the blue one. It would look beautiful against her skin."

"I was just thinking the same thing, sis. The red dress, she can wear next week or so. Then, with the blue dress, we'll take these silver shoes. She will look absolutely stunning."

"How long will she be staying here?"

"I don't know. I can't see anything around her. It's like there is a wall around her. I can't see a thing. And Edward can't read her thoughts either. It's very strange. But she will have to stay a few weeks at least. I want to know what has happened to her. I have a strange feeling about it."

Then the door of the bathroom opened and Esme came out with our girl.

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**Please review. XXX**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Epov 

We were all waiting in the living room, waiting for the arrival of the girls.  
Carlisle had decided to try to talk to the girl. Even though she hadn't said a word to us, he was determined to try for himself. He wanted to know why she was able to cry. Maybe she could do other things that a normal vampire couldn't. All different theories were flashing through his mind, the one more spectacular than the other.

You could see that he was fascinated about this. Carlisle was always in search of new information, new knowledge. And especially things about our kind, vampires. In generally he only found old stories about the blood sucking creatures of the dark. Rumors about garlic, crucifixes and coffins. Nothing but a bunch of nonsense. So when he found something that was real, Carlisle couldn't hide his curiosity. He was like a 5-year old, eager to have his present.

I heard footsteps coming from the stairs.

"They're coming. Remember to keep a safe distance from her. We don't want to scare her more than she already is. Got it, Emmett?"

"Yes, dude. No problem."

We all stood on one side of the room, away from the door. First came Rosalie and Alice. Alice gave me a quick look.  
"**She looks so beautiful. It was a real struggle to get her in that outfit but it was so worth it. You'll be surprised."**

Now I was truly curious. Alice was shielding her mind off so I couldn't have a little preview. But I didn't have to wait long. Esme came around the corner followed by our girl.  
If my heart would be still beading, it definitely would have skipped a few beets.

She was absolutely breathtaking. Now free of any mud or dirt, you could see the beauty that was hiding there.  
She had a heart-shaped face, beautiful pale skin, a pretty thin nose and gorgeous full lips. Currently she was biting on her under lip what made her look really cute. Alice had washed and straightened her hair. Now her long, dark brown locks were hanging on her shoulders. And that blue dress looked so good on her. She really looked like an angel.

**"I told you she looked beautiful."**  
I couldn't find the strength to pull my eyes from the girl. Never, in my 108 years, had I witnessed such a beauty.

The girl was holding hands with Esme and was scanning the room. Carlisle took a step forward and my girl immediately backed away from him. My girl?

"Ssh, dear. You don't have to be afraid." Esme said to calm her down.

"I wish you no harm. Please, have a seat." Carlisle said in a calm voice.

Esme pulled her down on one of the large sofa's. Alice, Jasper and Rosalie were already seated in the other couch with Emmett on the banking arm. Carlisle took his seat in his chair and I stood behind him, against the wall.

"I would like to introduce ourselves first. I'm Carlisle Cullen and this is my family. The woman next to you is my wife Esme."  
Esme smiled politely at the girl, squeezing her hand lightly.

"And these are my daughters Alice and Rosalie. You already met them. And my sons Jasper, Emmett and Edward."

With every name, she looked at the person. When she crossed eyes with me, a weird feeling went through me. A feeling I never felt before, a burning desire in my stomach. Also, I had this strange idea that she looked longer at me then the rest.

"I just want to explain that you don't have to be afraid of us. We wouldn't dare of hurting you. I've heard that you're not very fond of the present of men and we respect that. Me and my sons will try to keep our distance so that we will not offend you. But I would like to ask you a few questions if it's all right with you?"

The girl didn't answer. She just stared at Carlisle, showing no emotion what so ever.

"We would like to know where you came from. Seeing the clothes that you wore, we suspect for the south."  
The girl said nothing. She sat there, staring at her hands.

"Can you tell us who created you, made you like you are now?"  
Still no answer.

"Maybe you can tell us your name?"

"You really don't have to be anxious, dear. We just want to help you." Esme said, trying to comfort the girl so that she would answer the questions.

But still no response. I knew this would be difficult. Back in the forest, she also didn't say a word. And sitting in a room full of strangers wasn't very encouraging. Especially when half of the people were men. Carlisle tried a few times more. Asking simple questions, nothng too complicated or according her 'special gift'. But she remained silent.

"**I don't know what to do, Edward." **I sighed.

"Maybe we should let her rest for a bit. She's been through a lot. Esme, can you escort her upstairs, please?"

"She can stay in my room." Alice said.  
I really loved my sister, helping me with almost everything.

Esme stood up, helping the girl to stand on her feet. I knew that Carlisle was a little bit disappointed but he had to give her time and he knew it. As a doctor, he knew not to force people into talking. Otherwise the results could be not so pleasant.

Esme was gesturing the girl to go upstairs. She was going to but then she turned around and gazed at us. One for one, she looked us in the eyes. Just like in the beginning. First with Carlisle and then all the way up to me. When she finally looked at me, she hesitated. There was something in those eyes, something hidden in those golden orbs. I didn't know for sure what it was. But then she opened her lips and spoke for the first time.

"Bella." she said. Nothing more, just one word.

"What did you say?" Carlisle asked.  
She still didn't look away from my eyes.

"My name is Bella." She said again, very silently.  
It felt like she was answering to me instead of Carlisle. She stared another few seconds into my eyes and then left us, going upstairs.

We were all shocked. It was the first time she had said something. It wasn't much but it was a start. I stared at Carlisle, wanting to know what he thought of the situation. He gestured me to follow him to his office.

"What do you think about this?" I asked when we entered his bureau.

"I think that there's hope. She will start to have faith in us. And slowly she will open up for us. But it will take time. Therefore we just need to be patient."

"So, she'll be staying for a while," I asked.  
There was a little part of me that was hoping for a positive answer. I wasn't ready to let this beautiful creature, Bella go.

"We can't just leave her, throwing her on the streets. The girl has been through a lot. I can feel it. Jasper told me she was terrified, scared to death. Besides, I don't think Esme could leave her like that. She would be heartbroken. "

"I know, she already loves Bella."

"Yes. But it is so strange."

"What do you mean?"

"She's so scared of men. Absolutely petrified. Yet, when she told us her name, she was looking directly at you. Like she was answering to you."  
I remained silent, not knowing how to answer that.

"Maybe you're the key. Maybe she will open up to you."

"I doubt that. I think that Alice and Esme will help her. Not me."  
Carlisle leaned back in his office chair, a little smile on his face.

**"We will see, son. We will see."

* * *

**

******Sorry that I'm late but I was on holidays.  
********Please review. XXX**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Epov 

Life went on in the Cullen mansion.  
I, my brothers and sisters went to school; trying to look like we were learning something new. Carlisle went to work at the hospital and Esme stayed at home, making new decoration projects.  
Bella didn't say a word after our meeting in the family room. For the first two week she mostly stayed inside the safe walls of Alice's bedroom. Occasionally she came out but only for an hour or so. Usually she would sit with Alice when she made her homework or with Esme.

She really looked interested in their work. Almost every evening she sat at the kitchen table with Alice. Especially when it was English homework. Papers about all the classic story's, from Jane Austen to William Shakespeare. There was a new fire burning in her eyes when she listened to the stories Alice told her. It was fascinating her. It was a joy to see.

She also liked to sketch. With Esme, she learned a lot about colors schemes, shadows and making things come to life on paper. And she was pretty good at drawing. Her pictures were beautiful, mostly drawings of nature. She would sit hours in the garden, drawing all the different flowers and trees that were present in the backyard.

The men stayed as far from her as possible. And she did her absolute best to stay away from us. When she caught a glimpse of you, she hurried back to her room. But even so, I sometimes couldn't help myself. I would sneak into the room and watch her from a distance. I just couldn't control this urge. She was such a beauty and a lovely girl. I couldn't forget the words Carlisle had said to me the other day.

_"Maybe you are the key."_

I couldn't be the key. I had never met this girl, I didn't knew her. Bella was a complete strange to me.  
Yet, I couldn't get her out of my head. Her face, her hair, her smile. There was a constant picture of her in my head. I never experienced this before. I thought about this for days. What could this be? This feeling inside of me. I really wanted to speak with someone about it. But I was to chicken to try. Was this what I had searched for? Was this love? No, it couldn't be. I only met Bella. She never spoke a word to me. This couldn't be love.  
Yet, I had the impression that my brothers and sisters had another opinion. Over the weeks, they gave me the weirdest comments.

"**Oh, Edward. Isn't she lovely? You two would make the perfect couple**." Alice said one day.

"**When are you going to have the balls to talk to her? She will not eat you. Come on, you need some action. Go for it, bro!"**

Emmett really should learn the word 'subtlety'.  
**"Are you really that blind?"** Rosalie said, clearly mocking me.

Jasper regularly gave me a weird look. But then he had see me suffer enough and one day he just gave me my answer.  
**"You are so confused, Edward. Don't make it so hard. Just listen to your heart. You already know the answer to your question."  
**  
With his powers he could sense all our emotions, our feelings. It wasn't easy for him sometimes. But he gave me a reply. He showed me the path. I trusted him, trusted his gift.

So after a few weeks, I admitted to myself that I had fallen in love with Bella. Not more hiding from my feelings. Instead, I embraced them.  
But I didn't know if she felt the same way about me. Probably not. She was afraid of me. When she noticed that I was in the room, she quickly disappeared.

I wished that I could talk to her, making her feel comfortable. I wanted to show her that she didn't had to be afraid and that she could trust me. But I had to be patient. Bella was starting to get comfortable. Maybe, she will learn to trust me, in time.  
…

It was the beginning of December. The green trees of our city were now covered with a white snow blanket. All the kids of Forks were delighted that father winter had arrived. As for me, the snow didn't gave me the same joy like every other year.

At home, nothings had changed. Bella lived now almost 3 month with us but she still didn't talk. But on the other hand she became more comfortable with the family and didn't always run away when she saw one of the guys. She helped Esme with cleaning the house, making sketches and picking colors for the new room that Esme was creating.

Carlisle had tried to make a conversation with Bella several times. But without success. He thought that she's been through some sort of trauma and because of that, she wouldn't speak. Every now and then she would go up to Alice's her room and cry. Memories that are coming back. That was Carlisle's explanation. I just wished that I could do something for her. Sometimes I just wanted to go to her and take her in my arms. But I knew that would be a terrible mistake.

I was going to my room. School had been yet again a boring experience.  
And Mr. Banner had gave us a ridicules homework about the human cells. I sometimes couldn't hold back my laughter.  
This man was really enthusiastic about his work. He truly wanted to teach important things to the students. But more than half of the students didn't listen and he couldn't learn me anything new. I had two degrees in medicine. So I don't expect anything new coming from him.

I was walking to my room when I noticed that my door stood open. I never left my door open. I listened carefully and I could hear pages being turned. Someone was reading my books. I walked to the door and glanced around the corner. I couldn't believe it.

There, standing next to my bookshelf, stood my angel. She was looking through the different titles and authors. She was very concentrated and I noticed that she was smiling. Her whole face was glowing. She really liked books.

Bella hadn't noticed that I was watching her so I let her be. After a few minutes, she had found a book that she liked so she took it from my shelf. She flipped through the pages, fascinated by the writing texts. I loved watching her, seeing her smile like that. It made me love her even more.  
Suddenly she looked up from the book. She slowly turned her head and she froze the minute she saw me. She quickly walked to the bookshelf to return the book.

"No, please. You can keep it."  
Still, she placed the book back on his rightful place. She kept her head low, not wanting to look at me.

"I'm sorry." She whispered.  
Did she just spoke to me? I stared at her, not believing what just happened.

"Excuse me?"  
She looked up. Her cheeks were a bit more red than usual. So, Bella could not only cry but also blush. That was interesting.

"I'm sorry for entering your room, Edward."

She said it quickly and then made her way out of my room. I was left behind, speechless. For the every first time, she spoke directly to me. I felt amazing. I couldn't believe it. She spoke to me! After two month, she finally spoke again. Not to Esme or Alice but to me! Her voice, it was the most beautiful sound I ever heard in my life. And her saying my name. It was just divine.

Maybe Carlisle was right. Maybe I was the solution to her recovery. I surely hope so.  
I wasn't there yet but it was a good start.

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**please review. XXX**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Apov 

Today was Christmas, yippee ! One of my favorite holidays. It gave me an perfect excuse to decorate the house. And Esme was so kind enough to put me in charge of decoration, much to the dislike of Emmett. And this year, I made the house even more cheerful.

In the living room stood the biggest tree I could find. It was decorated with Christmas balls, a bunch of lights, beams, ribbons and on top stood a beautiful angel.  
And everywhere in the house, I placed little Christmas trees, decorated with fake white snow. The stairs were decorated with beams in a silver, gold or red color.  
I also made a little system so that every room had a little music number when you opened the door. The living room was 'Jingle Bell', the kitchen 'all I want for Christmas' and so on. It was really playtime for me.

And Bella helped me. She was so kind enough to help me with picking out the decorations and garnish the house.

Since a few weeks, she became more relaxed and started to talk more to us. Edward had caught her in his room and there, she talked for the very first time in months. I and Esme tried for months to let her talk again. She responded but nothing verbal. She simply smiled or nodded. And with Edward, she spoke. He didn't even had to do any effort.  
Since then she started to change. She wasn't so afraid anymore to open her mouth. Like something in her mind just switched. It was a real breakthrough.

She really was a lovely girl. But it was frustrating me like hell that I couldn't see her future. I tried so many times. But mostly I couldn't see a thing.  
It felt like something was blocking me, like I was hitting some sort of wall. But once or twice, I managed to see a little hint of the future.  
However it was always the same vision. I could see Bella smiling, see her running in the sun through the woods. She was holding hands with somebody. Unfortunate I never saw that person, just his hands. But I was almost certain that it was Edward.

He was so changed since Bella arrived.  
When he saw her in that blue dress, his whole face lightened up. I never saw that expression on his face. It was so endearing to see.  
And I knew that he was watching her every time when she made homework with me. Edward would sneak behind the door and occasionally steal a glance around the corner. He just couldn't hide it. The love and adoration almost dripped off his face.

I also had my suspicions about Bella. Every time she saw Edward or we talked about him, she started to blush. Very lightly, but noticeable. And since the incident in his room, it only became worse. It was very clear to me but the two lovebirds were to chicken to confess their feelings for each other.

"Bella, are you almost ready?" I yelled.

She was in that shower for almost an hour. It was taking too long. I still needed to get her in that dress, do her make-up and her hair. What was taking her so long? It was not like she had to clean a lot. She practically never left the house.

Then finally the door opened and she came out with only a blue bathrobe around her body.  
"I'm sorry, Alice. It's just so refreshing." she said very timid.

"It's not a problem, Bella. But I have to get you ready. It is Christmas! That disserves something special."

Bella groaned.  
"Do I really have to?"

"Yes, you do! We can't let Rosalie walk away with all the glory."

"I heard that, Alice!" Rosalie yelled from her room.

"I know. Please, Bella? You know I would never put you in something that wouldn't look good on you. Trust me?"

She signed and then looked at me.  
"I do trust you. Just… nothing extreme."

I pulled her in my arms and gave her a big hug.  
"Never. You will look like a masterpiece. Now, let's get started. We don't want Edward to wait any longer?"

And just as expected that little blush made his entrance on her cheeks.

Epov 

It was Christmas, one of the most enjoyable holidays of the year. Families were gathering to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. That was at least the original reason for this feast. Now, it was only a motive to come enjoy a great dinner and open a bunch of presents.

I was sitting in the couch, waiting for my sisters.  
As we were vampires, we didn't have a big dinner with salmon, stuffed turkey or Christmas pudding. Our way of Christmas was just opening the presents together and enjoying our time as a family. Sometimes we went hunting in the evening. But maybe this year we would skip that as Bella wasn't a great hunter.

That was very strange. She was a vegetarian, seeing her eye color. But the first time the girls went hunting with her, she didn't catch one thing. She kept missing her prey. Even a baby elk was too difficult to catch. Alice had to do it for her. It made me wonder how she survived all those years as a vampire.

"We are ready!" Alice said while entering the room accompanied by the lovely song 'Jingle Bell'.

It was truly starting to agony Emmett.  
She was followed by Rosalie and finally Bella. Again, she looked absolutely beautiful.  
This time she wore a strapless, red dress. It looked gorgeous on her. I glanced at Alice, thanking her in my mind for her creation. She winked at return.

**"Don't you worry. I told you she would look wonderful. When are you guys going to trust me?"  
**I laughed with her response.

"Ok, I think everybody is here. Who wants to start?" Esme asked.

"I will!" Alice stood up and took the first present from under the tree.

Almost all the presents were opened.  
Jasper was reading his new book concerning the war, Emmett was playing his new game on the playstation and Rosalie was admiring her new shoes and earrings. Everybody was enjoying their presents. They gave me a few CD's and Alice got me a original LP of Ray Charles. Esme had received a new drawing desk, Carlisle a few books about the history of mankind and medical evolution and Alice… Well, let's just say that we soon need a bigger house for her wardrobe.

But for Bella, it wasn't finished yet. She only had two presents. Jasper and Emmett had given her a sketchbook and a complete box full with pencils. Alice and Rosalie gave her a whole new outfit, containing 3 pairs of trousers, 5 t-shirts, 5 tops and a beautiful coat. It was obvious that she liked all her presents. But the best was yet to come.

"Now. Bella, Carlisle and I want to give you our present. But it's not here. It is upstairs." Esme said while standing up.

Bella raised her eyebrows, not expecting this. We all stood up and went to the second floor. On your left you had my room but on the other side there was another room that wasn't occupied. Not yet. We all stood now before the door of that room.

"Honey, you've been living here with us for a few months now. And we thought that you deserved a room on your own now. You may go in."  
Esme stood back and Bella opened the door. When she opened the door, she was shocked.

"OMG, I can't believe my eyes."

Her room was painted in a crème color with one wall in red. On the right there was only glass. Against the red wall stood her bed, a black framed bed covered with white sheets. There also was a little desk and behind the door stood an enormous bookshelf.

"Look, Bella. Here's the door to your own bathroom. You have a bath including a bubble function, a luxurious shower as we all know that you like to take long showers, two sink and a full length mirror. Just like my bathroom. And this is your little closet."

"Alice, that is almost as big as my room."

She looked so surprised. And the funny thing was that she helped Esme with decorating her own room. My lovely mother never told her for what she was designing. Bella turned around and looked at my mother. A single tear was running down her cheek.

"Thank you so much."  
She ran to Esme and gave her a big hug.

"I can't believe you did this for me. I'm not worth all of this."

"Of course you are, sweetheart. You are part of this family now."  
That only made her cry even more.

"Thank you, Carlisle."  
Bella looked like she was going to give Carlisle also a hug, spreading her arms towards him. But eventually she backed away. She was still a bit uncomfortable with men.

"It was nothing, my pleasure."

"Come on, it's time to sing a few Christmas carols." Alice said and dragged Jasper downstairs followed by the rest.

"Oh, Alice. I'm sick and tired of those stupid songs." Emmett yelled.  
But I stayed behind. There was still something I had to do.

"Uh, Bella? Can you wait a second?"

She stared at me, not knowing what was coming.  
"I still have my present for you."

I pulled my present from behind my back, holding it in front of me.  
Bella was still staring intensely at me. At these moments I really wished I could read her mind. But she was a mystery for me, a closed book.  
It was completely silent in the room. The tension was almost painful. Carefully she took the present from my hands and opened it. I really hoped that she would like it. She torn the paper off and held the package in front of her.

"I noticed that you like books. So when I saw this, I really wanted it for you. Something to start your own collection… I hope you like it?"

She still hadn't said a word. She only looked intensely at the book. It was a compilation of Jane Austen's novels. I was started to get a little nervous. What if she didn't like it? What if she really hated it and thought that it was a joke. Maybe I picked up the wrong signals. Finally she looked up, tears ready to fall.

"Edward, it is wonderful. This is something I always wanted. Thank you so much."  
She smiled at me, a big, genuine smile. It made my heart meld.

"You're welcome, Bella. Anything for you. Merry Christmas."

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**I just want to thank you for your support.  
It gives me great pleasure to know you all like my stories so far.  
I just hope that the next chapters will also ****please you.  
But thank you so much for reading my stories and giving your commentary. XXX**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Epov

Since Christmas, everything went better and better with Bella.  
Giving Bella her own room was a great move of Esme. Within a few days, she transformed the room into her own sanctuary.

She started to collect books and my book had a place of honor, lying on her nightstand at the moment. On every shopping spread she joined Alice and Rosalie. But instead of going through thousands of clothing shops, Bella went straight to the more abandon bookstores. Much to the disappointment of my little sister. My girl had the same attraction to books like Alice with clothes. She bought all the classics that she could find. Wuthering Heights, Romeo and Juliet, the Hunchback of the Notre Dame, Phantom of the Opera…

But what surprised me the most was that I also found a lot of vampire stories in her cabinet. Dracula, Salem's Lot, books of Anne Rice. It seemed to be a bit comical to see Bella read all those stories about our kind. At least what the humans thought as 'our kind'. Most of those stories were false. Stories about pale creatures with long fangs and bright blue eyes that slept in coffins hidden in dark, molding dungeons and that would burn in the sun. It really made me laugh sometimes.

On her walls, she hanged different drawings that she made. Pictures of flowers, animals but also of us. At the moment there were only pictures of Esme, Alice and Rosalie. She was still working on the pictures of the men.

The bathroom was also very well used. Every day Bella took a one hour long shower. And sometimes you could hear her sing, mumbling her favorite songs. It was in those times that she felt the most relaxed and where I was content that she was with us.  
Having her own place made her so happy. Mostly because she felt guilty for having to stay in Alice's room all the time.  
Alice always claimed that it was never a problem. But I saw that Jasper was pleased to have his room back.

Bella was so changed since we found her.  
Back then, she was a shy, frighten little girl. A sort of closed flower in the middle of the desert. But now, she was slowly opening her leafs.  
And with every day that passed, my love for her grew even more.

She was cute, helping Esme with cleaning the house, reading books where she found one, sketching in the garden, going shopping with Alice and Rosalie, playing dress up with them. She was so lovely, fragile, charming, dedicated to her work. When she sketched, she didn't hear a thing around her. I could spy on her for hours without Bella noticing.

Carlisle had tried to have a conversation with her again. Now that she trusted us and wasn't so afraid anymore, he gave it another shot. It worked in the beginning. Bella answered every question he asked. She told us that she was turned 25 years ago when she was 18 years old and that she came from a town named Phoenix where she lived with her parents.  
But when the questions became more specific, she froze. She wouldn't speak about her maker, her life as a young vampire. She told him it was too painful. So something did happen. I was so eager to get to know the truth. To learn why Bella was so frighten. But she wouldn't let anything slip. What had happened to her?  
….

I was playing on my piano, letting my emotions inspire me for a new song.  
It had been a long time since I last wrote a song. Back then I didn't have a reason or inspiration for composing.  
I had my eyes closed. When I was composing, I tried to block everything out.  
So I made an effort to block the voices out of my head and let other senses (sight, hearing…) not bothering me.

I let my fingers slide over the keys, searching for a sound that would be appropriate for my Bella. It had to be something delicate, nothing harsh or dark. I finally found a melody that told my feelings for this angel. The inspiration was building and I let it all out. Translating my love and affection through music.  
After some time, I had wrote a little song.  
I liked it very much. The harmony between the tones was perfect. It started very quietly, and slowly the music would build up. But it kept the same sweet melody. It suited Bella, her character, her beauty, her will to please everybody. I placed my fingers on the keys and played the whole song over again. It was light, a bit dreaming. You could describe it as a sort of lullaby.

"**It is charming, real lovely. It fits her perfectly. "** I heard my mother say.  
I laughed. Sometimes, I thought that she could see right through me. A mother's intuition, she calls it.

I was halfway my song when I heard somebody take a deep breath, not far from me. I looked up, stopping my fingers from playing.  
There stood my Bella, watching me from the threshold. She had her arms around her body and her eyes were staring deep into mine. How long had she been standing there?

"No, please don't stop. It's beautiful." she said softly.

"You like it?"

To be honest, I was a little surprised that she liked my music. In general she listened mostly to rock music. So I believed that classical music wasn't her thing.  
Bella came towards me slowly, stopping right beside the piano. Her striking golden brown eyes looked me straight in the eyes.

"Yes, I never heard something so divine. It truly touched me."

A more beautiful compliment she couldn't give me. I couldn't suppress a smile. She took another deep breath.  
"Thank you, Bella. I loved it that you like the song. Do you like piano music?"

"Yes, I find it very soothing. With the piano, you can tell a story, you can let your emotions go free. I find it a great instrument."  
Yet another surprise for me.

"Can you play?"

"No,…unfortunate not. I never got the chance to learn how to play."  
She really looked disappointed.

There and then I made a decision. It was time to make a move. Otherwise this would go on and on. And I was sick and tired of playing dumb. I had to take a chance. I moved a bit on my bench and pattered the place besides me. Bella looked strange at me.

"Come, I will teach you how to play." Her eyes grew wide.

"No, it's …not necessary. You don't have to do this for me."

"Yes I do. I can see that you would love to play. The disappointment is written all over your face. And actually, I would love to teach you."  
She still didn't move.

"Please Bella. Trust me."  
She kept staring, battling the fight deep inside herself. But then, a little sparkle was seen in those orbs, a sort of determination.  
She sighed and carefully took place besides me. She never stood so close to me.

"Right, first I'm going to teach you a little song, just to make it a bit fun. Then we can start with the theory. Is that good for you?"

"Not a problem, you're the teacher."

I chuckled. I placed my fingers on the keys and started to play a little song. It wasn't the traditional song that every child learns for the first time. But it was the same qua difficulty. The whole time, Bella listened very carefully, watching my hands precisely.

"Now, it's your turn. Place your fingers here."

I showed her the places and let her take the position.  
"No, your index finger has to stand here."

And without thinking I placed my hand on her, repositioning her finger.  
I didn't know what came over me. One moment I'm being extremely careful not to touch her or scare her and the next thing, I was almost holding hands with her. I didn't dare to move; I just stared at my hands covering hers. They felt so soft against my skin.

The whole time Bella didn't say a thing. She only gasped when my fingers touched her, being shocked that I actually touched her. But other than that, she didn't move a muscle. It surprised me to no end that she stayed so calm. Last time I touched her, she yelled all the air out of her longs.

Slowly I turned my head toward her, wanting to see her face. She was watching me too, looking very intensely into my eyes. To my completely surprise, there was no fear in her eyes, no disgust, no panic. It looked like she was searching for something, an answer hidden in my eyes. But I didn't have a clue for what she was looking for.

We sat there, just watching each other. My hand still covering hers. I didn't feel like taking them away from hers and she didn't pulled away either. It just felt perfect. Suddenly Bella smiled at me, a full smile.  
"I trust you, Edward."

I smiled back at her, almost not able to contain all the joy and happiness that I felt inside of me.  
She finally had made her choice. I could see it in her eyes. She was willing to try. Bella was willing to let me in and open up to me.  
I really wanted to take her in my arms, keeping her there and never let go. But I didn't want to push my luck.  
So I just squeezed her precious little hand and continued with our lesson.

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**Please review.**  
**Next chapter will be in Bella's point of view. XXX**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Bpov

For the first time in my life, I felt happy. Not horrified, scared or lonely but truly happy.  
This family, these people, they were different. So unlike the others that I met in my 25 years of vampirism. I really liked them.

Alice and Rosalie, those two were so sweet. Especially Alice. When they found me back in the woods, she comforted me at once. It was so odd to have a complete stranger so close beside me. And when she and Rosalie brought me to their house, I didn't protest.  
Something deep inside me told me that I could trust these girls. And I probably didn't have the strength to fight them off.

Rosalie was a bit distant from me at the beginning. For the first few days she kept an eye on me. Probably anxious for another panic attack or something like that.  
I was a threat, a danger for her family. I didn't blame her. Taking a unstable girl into your house isn't the smartest choice.  
But I'm very grateful that they gave me the benefit of the doubt.

And after a while Rosalie became more friendly and more relaxed around me. Yet, I didn't had the same bond with her as with Alice but I liked her also very much. And they were so much fun. Although I didn't like shopping and anything revolving clothes, they made it pleasurable. And every time Alice picked out an outfit for me, I looked like a princess. Sometimes I couldn't believe that the girl in the mirror was me. It was really great to have some sort of sisters.

And Esme, she was such an adorable woman. Always kind, always smiling, always there to help or to comfort me when I had a bad time. When I had one of my tantrums, she came very quietly to my room and took me in her arms. It gave a certain feeling of comfort and it calmed me. She somehow could vanquish the bad thoughts and make the tears disappear.

And she taught me so much about art. She told me a lot about her favorite artists and showed numerous pictures of their work. I also learned how to create perfect shadows, capture the light correctly on a painting, how to proportion my subjects.

I literally worshiped her. She reminded me of my mother. Or at least what I could remember of my mother. My memories of my human life were starting to fade away little by little. Unfortunately some other memories were as clear as crystal.

And the men, they were oke. I was so scared in the beginning, especially from the big guy, Emmett. He looked so huge and dangerous to me. But now I know that he wasn't dangerous. On the contrary, he was very nice, cute even when he was playing a game on his computer. Sometimes he just acted like a 5-year old. Rosalie has her hands full with him. But just to be sure, I kept my distance.

And then there was Edward. Oh, Edward.  
The first time I saw him clearly, standing against the wall in their living room, I was completely blew away.  
He was the most gorgeous man I had ever seen in my life which included my human and vampire life. That body was just marvelous. Perfectly sculpted , not too big or too small. It made me wonder how he looked under those clothes. Because when he looked so good with clothes, without would be breathtaking.  
And his face, unbelievable. His beautiful cheekbones, strong jawline, full lips. They were all perfectly shaped. That smile of his, that beautiful crooked smile. God, if I could die, I would have when he smiled at me like that.

But the most beautiful feature of him was his hair. Those bronze locks were so stunning. I just wanted to run my fingers through them over and over again. That color was so unique. I loved it.  
But it wasn't only his hair that I loved. From the first moment I laid my eyes on him, I loved him with every piece of my still heart. I didn't know the guy but I knew that I loved him to death.  
And that scared me so much. I never felt like that before. But I couldn't let my feelings come out. I couldn't trust men. It would be just like last time a man came into my life. And I didn't want to go through that again.

Plus, he couldn't possibly have feelings for me. Such a pale, uninteresting, used girl like me. He could have any girl in the world. Millions of girls were probably standing in line for a date with this adonis.  
So he would definitely not pick me. I wasn't even worthy of standing next to him.

So, I kept my distance and avoided any contact with him what so ever. I almost slipped that first day when I looked him in the eyes. Therefore I tried to do my best and stayed as far from him as possible. In the beginning my plan worked well. But I just couldn't resist the call from his books. It had been to long that I had held my friends in my hands. The feeling of the pages turning against my skin felt so good. I was reunited with my first love.

But when he found me in his room, my feelings towards him came right back. That emotion of unconditional love, affection and respect for this god. I had tried to lock it away, somewhere deep inside of me. But the minute he locked eyes with me, I felt the love rising to the surface again. And I had to try so hard to contain it.

He didn't make it easy for me to ignore him. He kept staring at me during the day, thinking that I didn't notice. But I did notice and sometimes it was really annoying. I did my very best to keep a distant but he was like a constant figure in the room. A sneaking cat who had his eyes constant on his prey. I could almost feel his stare on my back, making a hole in it. It was frustrating me like hell.

But on Christmas, he finally broke my will to stay away, the final drop. When he gave me that book, I melted away. That was probably the most beautiful gift I received. Even better than my own room. It wasn't much but the meaning behind it was so wonderful. It felt like he could read my soul and see all my deepest desires.  
I just couldn't stay away from him. It was too painful for me. The look in his eyes told me that he cared about me. He wasn't like all the others. He was different. He was perfect.

And when I heard him play the other day, I felt my love increasing with every note he played. It was so beautiful, so enchanting.  
When he offered me to learn how to play, I was a bit reluctance. I didn't trust myself. Maybe I would start yelling again, seeing visions again from the past. But I was willing to try. At that point I was willing to try anything for Edward.  
And as he touched me, I didn't panicked. It was just the opposite. He felt so good; it was like someone had opened the doors of heaven for me. The feeling of his long, gentle hands above mine was just divine.  
I was so shocked that I stayed so composed. I just couldn't believe he actually was touching me. I stared him in the eyes, looking for hints of disgust, repulsion or something in that category. But there was none. I only saw a little hint of hesitation, like he was afraid of touching me, showing me this side of him.

Then I made my choice. I smiled at him. Showing him that it was alright. Saying 'I trust you' was my way to tell him that I wanted to try.  
I had lived to long in the shadows, afraid of being myself. I had let my live be lived by somebody else. And I was sick of it. I didn't want to be the poppet anymore. I wanted to take my chances now. Edward made me feel alive, like a real woman only by looking at me.

So I chose him, not my fear. I would trust my instincts and let the future come to me. Because I knew in my heart that I would be safe with Edward.  
I couldn't hide it anymore from them. They have been so nice to me. One for one had they treated me well and accepted me in their family. I just couldn't lie anymore. They disserved better. There was just one thing left to do. I needed to tell them the truth. I needed to tell them about James.

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**Please review. Everything is welcome. XXX**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Epov

My whole life, I thought that I would be alone, destined to wander the streets alone. I didn't saw life (or what you may call it) positive.  
But then my Bella came into my life and the dark world lightened up before my eyes. Everything looked so must better and brighter.

In the 2 month that passed, we became more and more closer. On every possible moment we were together, enjoying each other's company.  
Classes were now even more torture then before. All the lessons looked more boring than ever and it seemed that there were longer than before. I just couldn't concentrated. I only could think of Bella, my beautiful Bella. Being away from her was so painful. But every day she would be waiting at the door for me, anticipating my arrival.

We did a lot together now. We went hunting together what was a lot of fun. She still wasn't the best hunter but the way she ran after her prey... It was really cute. Still she did a lot better than a few months ago. At least she could catch an animal now. Unfortunately her garments didn't have so much luck. Because of her struggles with the animals most of her clothes were ripped or unbelievable dirty. Alice almost had a heart attack the first time she returned with me.

Sometimes we would snuggle together and I would read her a story from one of her books. Usually she picked a Jane Austen story. Bella adored the books. Or maybe it was because I gave her that book. I preferred the second thought. That was one of my favorite times together.  
Or we would go for a little run throught the woods, hand in hand.

I still taught her to play the piano every day. And she was a quick learner to my surprise. After a few weeks she could already play a handful of songs without the papers. All sort of songs, from Mozart and Tchaikovsky to Debussy. But her favorite song was the song I composed for her. On every end of a lesson I played it for her. She would sit close to me and lean her head against my shoulder, listen intensely to my music.  
Life was finally smiling at me.

The family was sitting in the living room on a stormy evening. Jasper and Emmett were playing a game of chess, Alice and Rosalie were shopping online, Esme was sketching near the fireplace and Carlisle and I were sitting in the couch, discussing the sessions of Bella. My little darling was upstairs, reading. She preferred her room for her literary quest.

"I see that everything is going well with Bella and you?"  
I smiled, thinking of our moments together.

"Yes, everything is fantastic."

"I'm glad to hear that… Edward, may I ask you something?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"I was just wondering if Bella ever told you something about her past? Maybe something about her life before us?"

I signed. I knew that Carlisle was hoping that my relationship with Bella would ease her a bit and that she would finally tell us what has happened, open the gate completely. But we didn't spoke about her past and I wasn't willing to try. It maybe would make her want to crawl back into her shell.

"No, she didn't mention anything. I'm sorry."

"It is not your fault. It's just… I assume that something has happen. Something terrible. And I thing that as long she keeps it inside of her, she will never recover completely. I just wished she would tell us what. What happened 25 years ago? Where are her parents? Who was her creator? Who did this to her?"

"His name was James." a timid voice said behind me.

I quickly turned around and was surprised to see Bella standing by the doorstep. Everyone had stopped with their activities and were also looking at my girl.

"Bella…?"

"It's oke, Edward. You've been so kind to me for all these months. I owe you all an explication."

"Bella, you don't have…"

"Yes, I do."

Bella looked very determent. She came into the living room and took her seat next to me. Immediately she grabbed my hand, squeezing it firmly. She was nervous, I could tell. I squeezed back, confirming her that I was there for her. All the other family members had also took their places and waited for Bella's explication.

"Bella, what happened?" She took a deep breath.

"Take your time. Don't rush yourself. If you want to take a break, that's not a problem." Carlisle said, reassuring Bella that she was in control.

"I don't remember many before my change. I just know that I lived with my parents in Phoenix. And one day someone kidnapped me. He blindfolded me and brought me somewhere, I don't know where. Some old house or an abandoned factory. There he kept me prisoner for a long time."

"He didn't directly changed you?"

"No, I wasn't good enough for him, not yet at least. He told me that later. I wasn't the ideal girl at the time. I was a bit overweight and he wanted the perfect girl. So he kept me inside for a while and let me starve. That way I would lose my weight and be the ultimate girlfriend for him."

"Do you know why he chose you?" Carlisle asked.

"He told me that he liked me. I smelled divine. _'You're so mouthwatering' _he once told me. He could have killed me but he wanted to keep me. Other than that he never gave me an explication."

"What happened next?"

"He … bit me, several times. The pain… it… it was so excruciating. I felt like I was burning. My whole body was on fire and despite of what I did, it didn't stop. I screamed, screamed but it didn't stop!"

Finally the first tears appeared on her face. My girl had held her strong but now the pain was too much. I pulled her closer to me and Bella buried her face against my chest. It broke my heart to see her in so much pain. It took several minutes before Bella had calmed down.

" Are you alright, honey?"

Bella looked up and tried to give me a smile but it wasn't very convincing.  
"Yes, I'm fine."

"Would you like to continue or…"

"No, I have to do this. I can't stop now."

She took another deep breath, stared me once again in the eyes and continued her story.

"After a long time; it seemed like forever; I woke up in a small room. I was laying on a wooden table. That was the only piece of furniture that the room contained. The walls were dirty and the wallpaper was torn. The smell… it was horrendous. I could smell rotten flesh, like a body that was in the stage of decomposing. There were no windows. Just one big door, made of some sort of steel.  
And there he stood… James."

"What did he look like?" Carlisle asked.

"He was tall. I would guess almost 6 ft. He had light brown hair, short cut and generally bloody red eyes. Not very attractive for a vampire. Nothing special…  
He just kept looking at me, smiling. It made me feel dirty. He just kept watching me. '_Yes, this looks very nice. You and I are going to have so much fun._' he said. And then he left. Just for returning months later, to have his… fun."

Bella needed a break after that.  
I was so furious. How could somebody do that to her, to my beautiful girl? Abuse her so badly in every possible way. That was just monstrous. Jasper was sending calming waves to me which didn't help very much. It was just so much to take in. My little Bella, my love had been through hell and there was nothing I could change about that. Yes, there was one thing I could do. Keeping her safe and treasure her like the most precious thing in the whole wide world. And that was exactly what I would do.

"He would come back to me every night and sometimes… he brought someone with him. Offering me to his friends as a sort of present. He then would watch, enjoying the show."

"Why could you not fight him off? You were a newborn vampire. Normally you're stronger than that son of a b*tch ?" Emmett asked suddenly.  
It was the first time somebody other than Carlisle or me had said something.

"That's why he left me hostage for several month. My newborn strength would die out and then he would be stronger than me. I tried to escape but this was no use. I couldn't get out. Also he fed me poorly. He gave me little animals; rabbits, rats and birds. He said I wasn't worthy of drinking human blood. I could smell them, the humans outside the building. And sometimes he brought a random girl with him. So when he killed her, I could smell her blood very closely."

'It almost killed me in the beginning. The smell was so strong, giving me this burning desire in my throat. I would knock on the door, literally begging for some blood. James never gave in. But then I turned my senses out every time I smelled a human. I didn't want him to have so much power over me anymore. So after many years, I became 'immune' for human blood and his tricks. . It wasn't easy but after a long while the smell didn't affect me so much anymore. I still can feel a burning at the back of my throat but now i can ignore it.  
I didn't screamed or yelled anymore whenever he or some of his friends touched me or hit me. I kept it inside of me, not wanting to show him that he was hurting me."

"And I played that role for 25 years. Day in day out, I pretended that he did nothing to me. Although I cried every night when he was hunting, I never showed him any emotions. He already had taken everything away from me: my parents, my house, my dreams, my life."

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	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Epov

The room was completely silent. Nobody dared to move a muscle. The only thing that could be heard was the rain against the window and the soft crying of my Bella. I knew that something terrible had happen to my girl. But I couldn't have imagined such a revolting incident like that.  
Everybody was devastated by the revelations of Bella. All their thoughts were running through my mind.

**"Oh, dear. How could somebody do that to Bella, the poor thing."** Esme thought.  
If she had been able to cry, she probably would have. She looked like she was standing on the edge of a complete meltdown.

**"When I get the stupid mother f*cker in my hands, I'm going to rip his head off. No one messes around with my little sister."** Emmett thought.  
I was surprised with Emmett's protectiveness. I never knew that he felt so deeply for my Bella, that he already considered her as his sister. I was touched by my brothers devotion.  
Jasper had similar feelings.

**"The man isn't going to live long. We are going to track him down and destroy him."  
**  
Rosalie was also having a difficult time processing this. Maybe a bit harder than the rest of the family. She was blaming herself for not recognizing the symptoms. I really had compassion with my sister. She had been through comparable events long ago when she was human. Now the memories were coming back.

**"I never knew that she had been through similar things as I had. Only, this is worse. How could I have been so stupid not seeing this? Oh, god!"  
**  
"Rosalie, it's not your fault." I whispered softly, trying to calm her down.

Emmett had heard my comment and took his wife in his arms. The whole family was just blown away from this information.  
But Alice was the one with the strangest reaction. Instead of thinking of Bella, she thought of me.

**"I'm sorry Edward. It must be horrible hearing this. I'm so sorry, brother."  
**She came standing behind me and laid her hand on my shoulder, supporting me.

**"This is really disgusting, what that James did to her. I just can't process this. Who can somebody do that, keeping someone hostage for 25 years? I wish there was a way for us to undo this incident. I wish we could help her."**

"We can." I simply said.  
**  
**"Come, love. We'll go upstairs. You need some rest."

**"That's a good idea, Edward. She did enough for today. I think she needs you. Now more than ever, son."  
**  
I took my girl in my arms and carried her bridal style to her room. She felt completely numb in my arms. I didn't like it one bit. It reminded me of my Bella when she first arrived here. Totally frozen and entirely detached from herself.  
I laid her down on her bed and took place next to her, lying face to face. Very gently I stroked her face, wiping away all the tears that were appearing on her soft cheeks. But the tears didn't stop from coming. Bella just kept staring at me, her eyes telling me that dreadful story again and again.

"I'm so sorry, Edward."

"Why do you say that? You don't have to apologize ."

Why would Bella want to apologize? It didn't make any sense at all. She kept looking intensely at me, her eyes blurry from all the crying.

"I don't know. I thought that you and your brothers were just the same. The same as James. For all those years, I thought that all the men were cruel, abusive, sex-addicted creatures how only wanted woman for their own personal pleasures. That we were nothing more than slaves to them.  
But I was wrong; I was so terribly wrong. You're not like all the others. You're just the opposite. Edward, you're the most kind, lovable, caring, charming young men I ever met in my life and I'm so sorry of thinking that you…"

"Shh, don't be sorry, my love."  
I gently placed my fingers on her lips.

"You don't have to apologize. It's not your fault that you had such visions about men. The only guy you only knew, was that son of a b*tch. He did horrible things to you. And that for entire 25 years. You didn't know better. I don't blame you for thinking such things."

"But still…"

"No, Bella. I don't want to hear another word. That is over. This is not your fault. It's all in the past now. He is not going to hurt you anymore. Bella, you mean everything to me. I promise you, my love. I'm not going to let you go."

Her eyes were completely fuzzy and filled with tears. But they were also filled with love and adoration. A little smile appeared on her face. Her whole expression was lighting up. For the first time since her confession she sincerely smiled at me. Bella lifted her hand and began stroking my face, letting her small fingers glide from my hair over my cheek to my chin.

"Oh, Edward. I just don't deserve you. I'm so lucky to have found you. Well, you found me. You're just too good to be true."  
She let her hand wander over my mouth, following the lines of my lips. I tenderly kissed her fingertips which made her eyes grow big.

"That's where you are wrong, my dear. It is me who's the lucky one. Because you are the most beautiful, endearing, sweet, mesmerizing woman I have ever seen in my whole life. You are just perfect, in every possible way. You're my one and only love, Bella. I love you."

It maybe wasn't the right time or the best moment to tell her that. But I just couldn't hold it back anymore. Bella had me under a sort of spell that was unbreakable. I just needed to tell her that I loved her. She had to know that I would be there for her at all times and that I would never leave her. That I was hers forever. Bella hadn't blinked or took a single breath ever since I told her that I loved her. She was completely blown away from my declaration. She didn't say a word.

I was starting to get a little nervous. No, scratch that. I was started to get really nervous, almost ready to combust. What if she didn't felt the same way? What if I scared her with my words? What if she didn't believe me? That she thought it was all a lie? Just some words to brighten up her mood, something I just said to make her feel better?  
She didn't need to answer my feelings right away. I would give her time. It wasn't my intention to scare her away from me. And surely not at this particular moment.  
Bella still kept her mouth shut.

"Bella?"

"Edward, I love you too."

My smile almost reached my ears. If I was still human, it would probably spilt my face in half. Bella loved me back! She truly loved me! I never felt so happy in my life. Bella gave me also a heartmelting smile. She kept her eyes lock with mine but even now and then she let hers fall down to my lips. I knew what she was hinting for. Even so carefully I leaned a little bit closer to her. Slowly I closed the gap between us. Bella came little by little towards me and sealed her eyes.

Finally I let my lips brush against hers. The very first seconds Bella seemed to be a little surprised but soon she started to return the kiss. It felt so good, heavenly almost. I never experienced such a divine feeling. Her lips tasted so delicious, so soft and perfectly shaped for my mouth. Bella pressed herself closer to me and slipped her fingers into my hair. All of a sudden I felt her tongue very lightly trace my bottom lip. I opened my mouth a little wider, meeting her halfway. Wow, I never thought this could be so good. No wonder everybody keeps chatting about it in their heads.

I didn't had a clue how long we stayed there, exploring each other. But I was the one who eventually pulled away. Bella's lips were a bit swollen and even more reddish than usually. Probably mine had the same outcome. Bella grinned at me which made me smile even more. I pulled her close to me, leaning my head against hers.

"Don't you worry. I will never leave you, Bella. I'll protect you, no matter what."

Jpov

"I'm going to find her. She is mine, Bella is mine!"

"You sneaky little bitch. Trying to escape from me? Oh no! You're mine and nobody's else's. I created you. Simply for my pleasure. Your ass and all that's attached to it belongs to me. I'm going to find you. And when I do, you'll be sorry for trying to leave me."

"Don't you worry, my little pet. Soon you will be back with your daddy. You're going to be safe again, in my arms. And when you're home again, you'll give me a gift. Because you probably missed your daddy. And you will be sorry that you ran away from me. Oh yes, you will give me a treat. I had been without for so long. Bella baby, I'm coming!"

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**Hey, I'm back with a new chapter. I hope you like it.  
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	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Bpov

"Alice, really! You need to stop pulling at my hair like that. Soon I'll have nothing left."

Two hours ago Alice had caught me in the living room.  
I was sitting with Edward in the sofa watching a movie, an older version of 'Sense and Sensibility'. And in the middle of it all, the little pixie came bursting in and commanded that I came to her room. It was time for 'the preparations' although we had at least 6 hours before it began. I looked at Edward, pleading for him to save me. But he wouldn't dare competing with his sister on this occasion. So Alice grabbed me by the arm and literally dragged me to her master bathroom.

There she started with a manicure and a pedicure by painting my toe and fingernails into a deep bloody red color. I liked the shade but it just was too loud, too noticeable for me. I tried to convince Alice that it just wasn't my color but she didn't want to hear one word.  
Then my hair was next. Alice washed it and tossed at least 10 bottles of something on my head. Most of the stuff smelled like strawberry and mint.  
Now at the moment our little jinx was still keeping me hostage in her princess master bathroom, brushing my hair, over and over again.

"Alice, I'm sure that there isn't a simple knot in my hair anymore. Please, just quit it."

"Quitting isn't a word from my dictionary, sister. It has to be perfect and only perfection will do for me."  
Alice stopped for a second to check if everything was acceptable and finally put the brush away. But then the blow dryers came. Not just one but two blow dryers Alice used to get my locks dry.

"Jeez, you've got a lot of hair. Rosalie, I'm going to need your help!"

"With what?" I asked.  
Rosalie came not much later with a package of rolls in her hands.

"I presume that you will need this."

"Yes, thanks Rose. With one box I wouldn't have enough. Look at this! That hairball probably has a life on its own. "

" Very funny. Listen, girls. You really don't have to do this. I'm telling you. My hair isn't the easiest and it won't curl."  
Rosalie and Alice just ignored me and started putting rolls in my hair.

"And what if I told you guys that I had a pink rabbit as a pet named Poufy Peter and that my parents only bought me one pair of shoes every year. Would you then listen to me?"

"Just relax, Bella. We're having fun."

"Yes, I can see that! You're having the time of your life. At least somebody is amusing herself."

"Oh Bella, don't act like that. I didn't have so much fun in ages. And It's all for a good cause. We don't want to disappoint Edward."

Edward, my Edward. Only hearing his name, brought all those amazing memories back.  
That kiss, no words could describe that kiss. The world may have gone buzzard, I wouldn't have noticed it. At that precise moment only Edward mattered to me. I don't know why but he had this strange effect on me. I just wanted to kiss him so badly. It was like his lips were calling me, singing a song to seduce me to them.  
When his lips touched mine, I just couldn't let go. His lips were so soft, so perfectly shaped for me. It felt so good, practically divine. I needed him, needed him to force the bad memories away. What started as a horrible evening ended in beauty.

He had been so patient with me and so kind. I really sometimes thought that he was send from heaven to look after me. Those things he said to me, they went straight to my heart. Nobody had ever said such beautiful and romantic words to me. And he meant it. I could see it in his expression.

"Bella, Bella! Are you still with us?"  
Alice her voice pulled me back from my daydream.

"Hu, what did you say?"

"I said: what do you think of your hair? We're done."  
I turned my head and stared at the mirror. I almost fell out of my chair.

"Alice, what is that black thing around my eyes? That girl isn't me. God, what have you done to me?"

"Bella, just calm down. It's just a little mascara and eye shadow. Nothing to worry about."

"Masca... what?"

I didn't have a clue what she was talking about. If she was trying to impress me with her knowledge of Chinese, this wasn't the moment. I wanted to know what that mud on my face was. Alice looked at me like I just said something utterly ridiculous.

"Bella, mascara and eye shadow are make-up products. Those are products to make women even more beautiful than they really are. I wasn't born with these dark, sexy eyes. But what do you think about your hair?"

I glanced a second time at the mirror, focusing on my hair this time. Long soft curls were hanging around my face and were draped beautiful along my shoulders.

"Wow, Alice! It's beautiful. How did you managed that?"

"Ah, that's my little secret. Come, now it's time to pick your wardrobe."

I groaned. I thought that this nightmare was over. Of course I forgot the most important item: the clothing. Why did I had to say yes?

Alice dragged me into her bedroom where different dresses were spread out over her bed. I saw clothes in all different colors, styles, lengths and fabrics. God, this would take forever to fit all these. The little pixie immediately threw an extreme vivid pink dress over my head. That color was really hideous. Even before I said my comment, Alice lifted my arms to get the dress off me.

"No, that dress isn't right for you. The color is too bright."  
Next was a short green dress. It was maybe a bit too short but I like the fabric. It was very light.

"No, too short."  
The third outfit was an orange dress at knee length.

"No, next. This isn't your dress either."  
And this went on and on. On every dress, there was something Alice didn't liked.

"No, to boring. No, that makes you look fat. No, that doesn't match with your eyes. Not sexy enough. It doesn't match with your nails. No, it makes you look way to short. No, no, no."  
Nothing satisfied Alice. In the last hour I think I tried like 40 dresses on. Unbelievable!

But finally Alice found the perfect dress for me. It was a long, night blue dress. It was draped beautifully around my body, showed off my waist and had only one shoulder. Nothing puffy or anything. A very simple but elegant dress. I loved it very much.

"Alice. It looks beautiful. I hardly recognize myself. Thank you so much." I said while taking my beloved sister in my arms.

"I know. That blue suits you perfectly. Edward will not know where to look first."  
Downstairs the front door was being closed.

"Speaking of the devil. He's back home."

Already the butterflies were starting to go mad inside of my stomach. I was so eager to see him again. It seemed like ages ago that I saw my Edward, felt his touch, heard his voice. But on the other hand I was starting to get nervous. What if something went wrong?

"Alice, I don't know. What if…"

"Oh no! You are not starting to turn your back on this. I haven't done all this work for nothing."

"You loved it!"  
She wouldn't dare letting me feel guilty about this. I did this mostly for her and she loved every second of it.

"Yes but that's beside the point. You don't have second thoughts about it?"

"It's just that I'm afraid that I'll do something terrible. What if I can't control my thirst? Or what if I can't handle the crowd? I never have been to a prom before. All those men!"

"Bella, don't worry. I'll be there with Jasper. Rosalie and Emmett will be there too. And most importantly, Edward will be there. He will not leave your side, not even for a second. Not even if heaven would fall down on the school building. Nothing will go wrong."

Even with these words of comfort, there was still something that was bothering me. And clearly it was writhing all over my face because Alice kept looking at me.  
"Is there something else that troubles you?"

A little blush was creeping up. I could feel it and Alice probably could see it.  
"What if I trip? I'm not a very good dancer. To be honest, I never danced in my life, as far as I can remember."

Alice started smiling at me, making me feel like a child again.

"Oh, Bella. You worry too much. Maybe you can't dance but Edward surely can. He will make you look like a professional. A born dance princess. Now, are you done with fretting? Because there is a certain boy downstairs who is dying to see you."

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**Hey. Another chapter in Bella's pov. **  
**Don't worry. Next chapter will be written again in Edwards pov. **  
**Please review. xxx  
**

**And thanks for your support. You're all great.**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Epov

I was waiting anxiously at the end of the stairs.  
Tonight was the spring prom and all the kids of Forks would be there. It was one of the biggest events in this little town and everybody had been talking about it for weeks. The guys had all been desperately searching for the prettiest date and the girls had had several battles for the most beautiful dress and shoes.  
It was understandable for those normal kids to be excited about this. How many times could they go to a prom and just lose it for one evening? It was not like they lived in New York or Los Angeles when parties were something daily for the people.

Normally I wasn't the guy to go to these dances but Alice had this crazy idea to take Bella to the prom. At first I dismissed that idea. Taking Bella into public could be too risky. Not only for the kids but also for Bella. All those men could scare her off and push her back in her little safe house. And that was something we needed to avoid.  
But there was another part of me that liked the idea. Dancing with Bella, having her so close to my body, showing the world (well, the small population of Forks) that she belonged to me. That sounded good in my ears. But I was most of all concerned about Bella's wellbeing.

Alice was convinced that Bella would do excellent on this and that she would enjoy some dancing. But I still had my doubts about the prom. Especially about the part that Bella would enjoy dancing. She didn't look like a dancing queen to me. It was Carlisle who convinced me eventually.

_"Son, I think that this dance would be good for Bella in some way.  
We can't keep her inside the house all her life. Keeping her inside the house is locking her up and it will eventually change into a prison. She would be back at the beginning. She will have to go public sooner or later."_

"But what if something goes wrong?"

" It won't go wrong. Just listen first. My opinion is that this ball could be the excellent time to take Bella out. Forks high school isn't big so this party will not be overcrowded. Bella could try to get accustomed to have people around her other than us.

She will be with you all the time, I presume? And the others will also be in the neighborhood. I think you should try it."

"What will the others kids think of her?"

"If anyone important asks you something, just tell them that she's a niece of Esme and that she lost her parents recently. That Esme was the only living family member and that Bella is staying with us. They will not be surprised that you have fallen in love with her. With our other two couples, this will not be such a shock for them.  
And Edward, just be honest. Don't you want to go with Bella? I have this little suspicion that you would love to go with her."

He got me there. A little smirk was showing on my face and my father started to laugh. Carlisle knew me all too well.

"Edward, just try it. If you are getting too anxious or Bella can't take it anymore, just leave."

"Fine, I'll ask Bella. But I'm not sure if she will be willing to go."  
  
But most surprising Bella said yes. She had the same opinion as Carlisle. She didn't want to get stuck in the house. She had almost lived 25 years inside a small room. She wanted to go outside, see the world and all its wonders. And with us around her, she had faith that it would go well. Even though I could see the fear in her eyes, hiding in the corners.

And there I was, waiting for my angel. I made several attempts to look into Alice's mind, wanting to see Bella. But she kept repeating all the poems of Edgar Allen Poe over and over again. She wouldn't let me peek, not even for a split second.

"Oke, she's ready. Turn around and don't you dare to look inside my head. Don't ruin the surprise." Alice called from the top of the stairs.  
I turned around and heard Alice run down the stairs. She placed something (probably Bella) behind me and then ran away towards the living room.

"You may turn around."

Her words hadn't even left her mouth or I had already turned myself towards my girl. I was shocked. There stood the most exquisite girl I ever laid my eyes on. Was that my Bella? I just hadn't words to describe this beauty. That dress, it fitted her body so perfectly. All her curves came out so beautifully. It was hard not to stare at that. Her hair, those curls. Wow, my fingers were already itching to stroke those shining locks. And she wore make-up. How did Alice get her so far to put make-up on? Luckily she didn't overdo it. She was the essence of perfection.

"You look so gorgeous. Are you sure that you're my Bella?"  
That cute blush was appearing on her cheeks. Now it was clear why Alice didn't use any color on Bella's cheeks. She had her natural blush.

"What do I have to say? You don't look too bad either."

I had kept it simple. Just a black tux, a.k.a. James Bond style.  
I smiled while taking this beautiful creature into my arms. She looked so stunning, like a princess. I leaned forward, placing my lips lightly on hers.

"Don't do that! You will ruin her lipstick!" Alice screamed.  
The little pixie rushed her ass back into the hall and 'saved' Bella's lips.

"Don't do that anymore. No more kissing this evening."

"Alice, that's not your choice! I can kiss Edward whenever I want to. And when did you got changed?"

"When you two were ogling at each other."

Alice had overdone herself again. This time she wore a black, tight dress with symmetrical holes in the front. It really looked skimpy. If I was a girl, I wouldn't dare wearing that. But Alice also had a wide taste of clothes and she tried the craziest outfits.

"All right, we need to go. We don't want to be too late. We are going to ride with Rose and Emmett in the red BMW. Edward and Bella, you will take the Volvo. Rose, we need to go!"

"Alright, I'll be right up!"

Alice obviously had everything under control. I turned towards my Bella who was staring at me with those puppy dog eyes. She was so cute when she did that and she even didn't know what she did.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Yes. You lead the way, Mister Bond."  
…..

We arrived at school 10 minutes later. The prom was held in the gym. Only because it was the biggest space available. Forks wasn't very prepared for big events. I had my car parked on the parking place and was currently guiding my precious sweetheart to the gym.

Bella was starting to get nervous. I could see and feel it. She held my hand very tightly and walked extremely close to me. Her face was much more focused and every movement she noticed. There were a few students outside the gym and once Bella saw them, she curled herself against me.

"Bella, is everything alright?"

"Of course, why wouldn't it be?"  
I stared at her, eyeing her carefully.

"Because you're crushing my hand and you're practically jumping in my arms. That's why."  
She immediately loosed her grip on my hand and stared at the ground. I signed and lifted her head up, towards me.

"Bella, you don't have to do this. If you're feeling uncomfortable or this is too much, we can just go home."

"No, I have to do this. Otherwise it's never going to work. I can't stay in this state forever. Just… promise you will stay with me."  
I grinned and took her head between my hands.

"Don't you worry. I won't leave you out of my side. I can assure you that. I love you."

And with that said I kissed her soft lips. I was never going to get use to kissing Bella. Her perfect lips were just too good to be true. What started as a small kiss soon transformed into a heated, passionate kiss. Bella pressed herself against me firmly, deepening the kiss what gave me this sensational feeling inside my body. God, she was amazing.

**"What have I told you? You're ruining her make-up!"** I heard Alice yelling in my mind.  
I broke the kiss and we both moaned because of the loss. Bella was eyeing me, annoyed that I had broken our kissing.

"We should probably stop or otherwise Alice will separate us. We mustn't mess up her hard work on you. "  
Bella looked a bit disappointed by this statement.

"Yeah, you're probably right. As usual."

"Come. Let's go dance and amaze the crowd with your beauty."

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**Hello everybody. I hope that you like this chapter. I'm currently working on the second part of the prom. **  
**I'll do my best to hurry up. Please review. XXX**


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Epov

As soon we entered the room, everybody had their eyes on Bella. It was like an alarm had gone off when we arrived at the gym. Suddenly a hundred thoughts were racing through my mind. And it weren't the most decent ones.

**"OMG, Edward has found himself a girlfriend. Unbelievable! Pff, if that's the sort girls he likes. I bet she isn't that special."** Jessica thought.  
She clearly wasn't over my rejection.

**"Men, all the same. Only looking for a pair of boobs and legs. I don't see what makes her more special than me. Well, she does fit in with those Cullen's. Probably just as weird and hollow as the rest of them."** Lauren Mallory thought.

That girl never could say a positive word about anybody. Only about herself.  
Luckily there was one girl who didn't thought badly about Bella or who wasn't jealous. Her name was Angela.

**"Wow, she looks absolutely beautiful. Edward visibly looks happy with her. I'm glad that he found himself a partner. It can't be easy for him to live alone when your other family members have found their soulmates. "  
**  
Angela never said a bad word. At least I never caught her at one. She wasn't the gossip type, not like Jessica and Lauren who were already discussing what parts of Bella were probably fake. But it wasn't their talking that made me so irritated.

**"Jeez, that looks like a nice piece of meat. Where do they keep finding such beauties? I would like to get my hands on her. She's probably a wildcat in bed. Man, I wish I was Cullen right now. I would take her outside and f…"**

I blocked Newton's filthy thoughts out of my head. I made me so furious hearing him think like that about my girl. If I didn't promised Bella to stay with her, I would have taken Newton outside myself to have 'a little word' with him. But he wasn't the only one who was ogling at my girl.  
Almost the whole room was dreaming of getting their hands on my Bella. Each for a different reason of course.  
And the boys of La Push were also eyeing my Bella very closely. They didn't like it that there was a new vampire in the region. And I didn't like the fact that these guys were here. Forks wasn't even their school, they went to a special school in the reservation.

"Are you alright, dear?" Bella asked me.

Without noticing, I had almost crushed my angel's hand. Now I was the one who was getting a bit anxious. Quickly I loosened my grip on her delicate hand.

"Yes, I'm fine. Are you oke?"

"Alright here. I don't particular like all the staring but I can manage it for now. Are you sure you're fine? You look a bit tense."

"It's just their thoughts. There are really annoying."

"What are they thinking?"

"Nothing for you to worry about. Come on, let's dance."

I pulled my girl towards the dance floor.  
At the moment not many students were occupying it. So it was the perfect moment for us. Bella would not have to be scared of the crowd.  
In the middle there were four people twirling around, perfectly matched to the music. Naturally there were only four people in Forks who could look so first-class on the dance floor. They were my brothers and sisters. They were stealing the show, especially the girls. Alice and Rosalie looked stunning, the beautiful eye-catchers of the dance. Until now at least. My Bella would blow them away with ease.  
We had arrived on the dance floor and I turned myself around towards my girl. She really didn't look relaxed.

"Really Edward. I can't dance. We don't have to do this. I don't want to embarrass you."

"So, you can't dance? Well, that's strange. Because Alice told me you were looking forward to dance with me. You were dying to go to the prom with me."

"Did she?"

Bella was eying Alice now, looking not too pleased. But Alice was clearly enjoying herself, seeing the smile on her face. Of course she had heard our little conversation.  
**"Well, one little lie isn't so bad. I only did it to do well. At least, you are here with her. So don't complain!"**

I laughed. Alice could really be a pain in the ass sometimes but I wouldn't want to miss her for the world. My little irritating pixie of a sister.

"What is she saying?" Bella asked.

"Nothing important. Come on. Let's dance."

And with these words said, I scooped my girl up and started twirling around.  
At the beginning Bella didn't particular liked it. She was still a bit annoyed by Alice and I felt that she was a bit afraid of letting go. She needed to relax more and not think of the people around her. I pulled her close to me and whispered in her ear to not think of the others. It calmed her a bit and after a few songs she started to enjoy our dances.  
Whatever she may claim, she definitely could dance. Maybe not like Ginger Rogers but she certainly had a feeling for rhythm. She melted away in my arms and rested her head against my shoulder whenever there was a slow dance, wanting to have as much contact as possible.

I felt like the happiest guy in the world. Dancing with my own princes of my dreams, showing everyone that I had found my soulmate.  
All the boys were turning green of jealousy. And maybe I shouldn't have acted like that but I pulled my girl a bit nearer to me, illustrating these men that she was mine.  
I had never thought I would find her, my little Bella. These few months have been the most wonderful time of my existents. And I was certain that only good days were coming towards us. Me and my darling treasure.

We danced for a long time. And with time passing Bella became more and more comfortable with the crowd.  
She even shared a dance with Emmett and Jasper. She wanted to get out of her comfort zone, just to test her abilities. And it went very well even that I didn't like the fact that I had to let her go for a moment. And my brothers took their chances with my Bella.  
Jasper danced a sort of tango with her what was very good but it was Emmett who won the dancing price. He decided to dance a swing with my girl. It was really a spectacular show. Bella probably saw every corner of the room and almost hid the ceiling of the sports hall. It was killing me to see this. And I would have stopped it if only I didn't saw that amazing smile on Bella's face.

**"Calm down, bro. Can't you see that she's having fun. Don't be such a sissy and stop being so overprotective. Just enjoy the show."**

Afterwards I shared another few dances with Bella but then we needed a break. Because we had to remember ourselves that we should act like normal people and normal people couldn't dance for hours without a little pause.

"Are you enjoying yourself, honey?"

"Absolutely. I can't remember dancing being so much fun. Well, I hadn't met you yet so it couldn't have been a pleasant experience then. And an Emmett didn't exist either." she said with an enormous smile on her face.

And who was I to resist such a beauty. I had to smile with her. I bended forward, wanting to kiss her so badly. But the last second she pulled away and started to walk away from me.

"Hey, where are you going?" I said while taking her hand.  
I didn't want to lose her out of my side.

"I need to go to the toilet. Normal girls go the bathroom to rearrange their make-up. Right?"

There she had a point. Most of the girls did that. Jessica and Lauren had been to the lavatory at least six times already although it didn't help much.  
"Yeah, you're right. Very clever of you. I never thought of that. But don't take too long, oke?"

"I'll be back before you know it."

She gave me a little kiss and went to the girls' bathroom. I waited by the punch table, dreaming for more fabulous dances with my princess.

But after 5, 10 minutes Bella still wasn't back from the lavatory. I really started to get nervous. What was keeping her in there? I tried to listen to the voices of the girls in the restroom. But I heard nothing concerning my Bella. Eventually I couldn't wait anymore and I ran into the restroom.  
There were two girls appealing some make-up and who were surprised to see me in the girls' bathroom. But that wasn't the bad news. Bella wasn't here and I smelled an odd scent apart from all the bad perfumes. It was Bella's aroma mingled with something I didn't recognize.  
It was the smell of another vampire!

"No, Bella!"

I stormed out of the restroom, looking for my Bella. I followed the strange scent. It went outside, deep into the forest. I ran to the woods, first at human speed but once shadowed by the trees I ran as fast as I could. I followed it a long time but at the river it disappeared, completely faded away in thin air. There was nothing left. No scent to smell, no footprints to chase, nothing. Only a little piece of Bella's dress lay on the ground. The only piece of her that was left for me to hold.

I had lost her, Bella was gone. I had lost the only thing that mattered to me, my only reason to stay on this goddamned earth. He had taken my Bella away from me. It was that bastard James. I was sure of it, I could feel it in my bones. Because of him, I had broken my promise to Bella to keep her safe. He had taken her back, back to the hell she feared so much. God, if he touched her, hurt her… I will never forgive myself.

"Oh, Bella. I'm so sorry."

I don't know how long I sat there, sitting at the edge of the river, when I felt the present of my brothers.

"Don't you worry, Edward. We are going to find her. We'll look everywhere, all over the world if we have to. But we will find her and bring her back. We are not giving up."

* * *

**Hey. Here is part 2 concerning the prom. Hope you like it.**  
**Please review! XXX**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Bpov

I saw nothing. Everything around me was completely dark, draped in a cloak of shadows. I could feel the texture of the bag around my head. It felt rough and it smelled terribly, like a mixture of rotten eggs and bad fish. And with my vampire senses the stench was probably ten times more dreadful than normal. If I was still human, I would probably have puked the life out of me.

I tried to stand up but discovered rather quickly that it was impossible for me to move. My hands and feet were bound and even with all my strength (what wasn't much) I still couldn't break free.  
How did I got here? I remembered being at the prom, dancing with Edward, going to the bathroom. But then it got a little fuzzy. What had happened? Where was Edward and the rest? I needed to get out of here. They were probably worried sick, especially Edward. I tried desperately to break these bars around my wrists but it was no use. I was trapped.

"Help! Is there anybody out there? Please help me!" I shouted.  
But the only thing that I heard, was my echo.  
I really wanted to get out of here. I didn't felt safe and I had this bad feeling like someone was watching me. Unfortunately I was right .

An all too familiar snicker resounded in the room. A deep, mean laugh. I froze instantly when that unpleasant sound had reached my ears.  
**'No, please. Not again. Please let it not be him.'  
**

I prayed to all the Gods possible that this was all just a bad dream and that I would wake up now, laying the arms of my beloved Edward. That this was just my imagination playing tricks on me. But somewhere in the back of my mind I knew that this couldn't be a dream. I never had such luck. And my dreams were long forgotten, buried with the memories of my parents.

"Well, well. Look who's back with daddy? My little Bella."

A strong hand took the back of my head and pulled the bag off of me. I blinked a few times to get use to the light and then slowly lifted my head towards the giggles. There before me stood my worst nightmare: James. He hadn't changed a bit. What a surprise!  
To my great disgust he still wore that hideous jacket. A dirty, brown jacket that was pinned with all different items. Each item representing a victim that he liked (that tasted good). Hairclips, pieces of fabric, chains, a police badge… I always hated that jacket. It felt like walking around with a corpse. It made me feel sick.

I started to look around me, investigating the room. It looked very similar to the room I was held hostage all those years. Old, very dirty, broken windows, walls that started to rotten. Only this room was much bigger. And in the middle of it stood some old equipment. Old pieces of steel that looked like some sort of machinery.  
James was eyeing me very closely, that evil smile permanently painted on his face.

"I'm so glad that you're back." he said.  
He lifted his hand, trying to touch my face with his long, filthy fingers. I quickly turned my head, not wanting to have his rotten skin against mine.

"What is this? Aren't you happy to see me?" I felt his fingertips against my cheek.

"Don't you touch me!"

He immediately backed away, a little surprised that I had dared to speak up to him. He said nothing; he just watched me very intensely.

"Well, your babysitters certainly did some work on you. I'll have to complain. They gave you a dirty mouth. That's not the way I raised you. Come here and give daddy a big welcome kiss."

He caught my arms and leaned forward. I turned my head just in time to avoid his lips, which made contact with my cheek. Now, he was pissed. He slapped me in the face and then smacked his lips rough against mine. It hurt so badly, both inside as outside. His fingers were nearly breaking my bones and the force of his attack on my lips was almost deadly. I tried desperately to get his ugly face off of me but he was too strong.

"You ran away from me. You bitch, don't you try to do that again. You're mine, my little toy, my girl. Do you understand!"  
He slapped me a few times in the face.

"I'm going to show you that you're my territory. You're mine and mine only."

I knew what was coming and I tried frantically to break the bars. But it was no use. I couldn't get away. James laughed loudly while ripping my dress off and taking his clothes off as well. There was no way out. I was once again back to this god dammed place and nobody was going to find me.

**'Please, Edward! Save me! I need you!'**

Apov

We had been searching for Bella for almost 3 days now. We looked everywhere. We probably turned Forks and surroundings completely inside out. We went searching in the forest, the city of Forks and others around it, old abounded buildings, even the cemetery of Port Angeles. But still there wasn't a single clue that could get us closer to her. The water had washed her smell away. It was just like she had vanished in thin air.

And it was driving me crazy that I didn't saw it coming. I felt so guilty.  
I was having a great time at the prom. Dancing around with Jasper and showing my dress to the other girls of Forks which made them green of jealousy. I saw Edward and Bella dancing, having a good time. That expression on Edwards face was so dead gorgeous. This was worth like a million bucks if not even more. I never, in all these years, saw him look at somebody like that. He was truly happy and completely head over heels with Bella. It made me so happy to know that my brother had finally found his soulmate.

And suddenly I heard Edward yelling and running towards the exit. I didn't have a clue what was happening. Edward just ran away only to be followed by Emmett and Jasper moments later. I looked at Rosalie, wanting to see if she knew what was happening. But then I got a vision.

I saw Edward, heartbroken and all alone, by the river. He had a piece of fabric in his hand, the same color as Bella's dress and was staring at the stream. His face, the emotions written in his eyes. It was so painful, almost tear-jerking. This could only mean one thing. He had lost his Bella. And yes, hours later Jasper and Emmett came back with a heartbroken Edward. He looked devastated. Like someone had sucked all the energy out of him. I apologized like a million times to him.

_**"I'm so sorry, Edward! I didn't saw it coming. Please, forgive me**_."

He didn't say a word or looked at one of us. He just went to his room. And there he stayed for the last couple of days. He didn't come down or helped looking for her. He was just empty. He just lay there, in the middle of her bed. Esme tried a couple of times to get him to speak or to come down at least. But it was no use. He didn't respond to nobody. He was completely numb, dead.

I felt so bad, so responsible towards him and Bella. If only I could have foreseen this. Then Bella wouldn't be gone and Edward not depressed. This was just all my fault. Suddenly I felt a warm, comfortable hand on my shoulder and a serene feeling took me over.

"It's not your fault, dear." Jasper said.

I leaned back against his chest, looking for some comfort which he granted me by wrapping his arms around me tied.

"No, it is my fault. If only I could have seen it. If I had been more focused on them and not on the dresses, it wouldn't have happened. "

"It's not your fault. You need to stop torturing yourself. You couldn't even see her future before this happened. You tried many times before but it didn't work. So stop feeling guilty. Besides, one lost man is bad enough."

"How is he?"  
I hadn't tried to go see him. I felt too bad for him and maybe he would be furious with me what I could understand.

"Not too good. He just sits there, staring out the window. There is so much pain in that room. I almost can't stand it. He feels so guilty. He thinks that he has broken his promise to Bella. That man is crushed until the last bone. I don't know if he's going to recover when we don't find Bella back."

"But we need to find her, Jasper. We have to. She is part of this family now."

"And we are going to rescue her. We are not going to let that f*cker win. Over my pile of asses. Nobody messes around with this dude." Emmett said.

He was so determined to find Bella and bring her back home. He loved her too, just like all of us. Now that Bella wasn't amongst us, we knew how much she meant to us. She was our little sister, a lovable daughter, an indispensable part of our family. Now that she was taken away, it felt like that there was a piece missing from the puzzle. We would never be whole again without Bella. It was sometimes creepy to think that we were so close to each other.

"I hope we will find her. If only we had…."

At that moment everything went black. A vision penetrated my mind and I was taken away. This wasn't possible. I captured Jaspers arm firmly, looking for something to hold on to. Different imagines flashed through my mind. The one more horrible then the other. And all of a sudden I was back in the living room, completely blown away. I looked at Jasper who stared curious back at me. I wanted to tell him but then Edward came rushing to me.

"We need to go! Where is she? Alice, we need to save her! "

Everybody was waiting for me to say the place.

"To Seattle, to the old steel factory."

Epov

I didn't want to go downstairs. I didn't want to see my family. I just wanted to be alone. Alone in my own pile of misery. How could this have happen? Why did I let her go? I promised her I wouldn't let her go. I promised her that she wouldn't go back to him. That is was all over.

And now, I was sitting on her bed alone while she was probably been tortured if not only worse. It was killing me. Just knowing that this bastard was in her presence, touching her, making her feel terrible. I just wanted to have her back in my arms, keeping her safe from the outside world.  
My family had search everywhere around Forks and other villages but they didn't found a thing. It was like she never existed.

I wanted to help but I just couldn't handle all the sad thoughts they were having. And it was probably no use. By this time, he could be everywhere in America.  
Alice felt so guilty. When I saw her face, it broke my heart yet again. I knew that it wasn't her fault. She never could see visions of Bella's future. But all this guilt and pain was driving me crazy. So I stayed away and tried to block everything out. I just wanted my Bella back.

And now, I was sitting on her bed, staring at the trees outside our house with still that little piece of her dress in my hand. I kept thinking of her. I saw her running through those same trees, trying to get away from me. She really loved that game. I sighed.

And then Alice's vision hit me like a knife in my chest.  
I saw my Bella, trapped in an old building. It looked like the building wasn't used anymore. Almost all the machinery was gone, the windows were all broken and the walls were soiled and were starting to break. My girl was chained against a wall, only covered by a long, muddy shirt. She was crying and begging for me and Alice to come. I could hear her voice so clearly. It was like I was standing right next to her**.**

'Please, Edward. Find me! I need you. Alice, help!'

And then It was gone. I was standing in our room again. I ran downstairs in a split second, straight to Alice.

"We need to go! Where is she? Alice, we need to save her!" I yelled.

She just stared at me, looking completely numb. It was starting to frustrate me. We were wasting precious time here. But finally she came back to the present.

"To Seattle, to the old steel factory."

* * *

**Sorry that I'm late but I have a lot on my mind lately. I hope you like this chapter.**  
**Please review! XXX**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Bpov

I was sitting against the wall, all covered in dirt and his smell. My hair was all messed up, it was sticking to my face and my right arm was itching terribly.  
During 'his little feast' he had bit me and now the venom was spreading what wasn't very comfortable. I felt so unclean, so used. It had hurt so much, more then I can remember. I don't know how long he had tortured me but it seemed like hours.  
After his 'treat as he calls it' he gave me an old t-shirt (at least he had the dignity to give me some clothes) and chained me so I couldn't escape. He had developed a new sort of chains so that weaker vampires couldn't escape. Like I would try that again. James had learned from my first attempt. Now he wouldn't let me stay alone for a very long time.

He was in the neighborhood. I could smell him and not only on my body. He was watching me, enjoying my pain and misery. He always loved that. It gave him a sort of kick, seeing people drown in their sorrow.

I was all alone now in the room and this gave me the time to think which wasn't a good thing.  
Edward was continuously in my thoughts. I saw his face, his smile and his friendly, loving eyes. I could almost feel his soft fingers caressing my arms. I wanted to see him so badly. It killed me inside to think what he was going throw right now. And Alice and Esme… God, what was I doing to them? If only they hadn't found me. Then they wouldn't be in this mess. They could have continue their happy life without any interference from me. But then I wouldn't have met Edward and had these beautiful moments with him. These past months had been the best time of my entire life.

A crack of the door brought me back from my daydreaming and into the real world. James stared at me, inspecting my face very closely. He still had some blood in the corners of his mouth. Undoubtedly he had been haunting.

"Man, have you been crying all this time? Jeez, you're such a crybaby."  
Like he didn't already knew what I had been doing. But then a thought hit me.

"Why I'm I able to cry? Why I'm I the only vampire that's able to cry and blush?"

I wanted to have some answers. If I was doomed to spend my entire existence with him, I demanded some answers. James eyed me strangely.

"How the hell should I know?"

"Well, you created me. So you must know."

"Well, I don't. You're just a weird chick. A freak in the vampire world. Imagine that."  
He laughed, clearly impressed with his comment. But I wasn't finish yet.

"Why did you choose me?"  
James began to get irritated. I could tell. He was balding his fists and didn't look too happy.

"Are you going to ask me these stupid questions all the time? I already told you this. You smelled good!"

"But why not kill me like all the others? What made me so special compared to those other girls?"

James remained silence for a while, thinking at his answer. Or that was what I thought at least. Eventually he signed and started his explanation.

"I was all alone and I don't like to be alone. My previous mate was accidently killed. It was her own fault, the stupid bitch. She mingled with the wrong persons. So I went searching for a new girl. Someone that could satisfy all my demands.  
And after 10 years I came across you and your parents. I smelled you and thought **'Man, if that girl tastes as good as she smells…'** And you… almost looked perfect so I decided that it was you that I wanted. Of course there was that little obstacle of your parents but that was easily taking care of."

I couldn't believe my ears. What was he saying?  
"What did you do?" I yelled.

James smirked, obviously enjoying my panic reaction .

"Don't worry. They felt nothing. Oh, it was so easy. They looked so cute… sleeping in each other's arms. Head Chief of the beautiful city Phoenix and his lovely wife. So romantic and unaware of the danger that was watching them. Your mother was first to go. She wasn't so bad. But your dad… marvelous. You certainly have your father's blood. I just couldn't stop."

"You murderer! You killed my parents! How could you, you asshole!"

I was so furious. I tried to break to chains, wanting to just kill this mutt. He had fed on my parents!

"It's in my nature, darling. I wanted you and with your parents still alive I would never have my little pet. Where do you think this police badge comes from? I sucked them dry, until the last drop. And then I burned them along with all their precious possessions."

The tears were running fast across my cheeks. That son of a b*tch had killed my mother and father. They didn't even had a chance against him. I had always hoped that they were still alive. That one day I could see them back. But now my last hope was chattered. There was nothing left for me. I was screaming and yelling at him, letting all my grief and anger out.

"You asshole. I'm going to kill you! When I get out of here…"  
James gripped my arms firmly and his furious face was only inches away from mine.

"What are you going to do? You're mine, little bitch! You should be grateful that you're still alive. I gave you this gift, the gift of immortality."

"You gave me nothing. You only took things away from me. My parents, my house, my future, my life. You destroyed me!"  
James snarled at me and almost knocked me out, ripping my shirt in the process.

"You're mine! And you will never see the daylight again or your precious Cullen's. You're daddy's girl and I'm the only guy that's allowed to touch you. You are my f*ckdoll!"

"I wouldn't be so sure of that!" a wonderful voice said and suddenly James was slammed away from me into the wall. There in front of me stood my Edward.

Epov

She looked even worse than in Alice's vision.  
Her t-shirt was ripped at her right shoulder, showing a biting mark and her face was covered with mud and blood. Her eyes, they looked terribly. They were filled with anger, pain, and sorrow. She looked exactly like 7 months ago. Bella had only been with him for three days now and already he had completely transformed her back to that frighten, little girl.  
She was staring at me with her big, golden eyes. It looked like she couldn't believe that I was there. I stretched my arm out and carefully touched her cheek, wiping the tears away.

"Bella, it's me. It's Edward."  
A great force pushed me away from her and I crashed against one of the broken windows.

"If you think that you're going to get her, forget it. Not without a fight! She's mine, pretty boy!"

He was challenging me. He stood there, hovering in front of my Bella, ready to attack. Well if he wanted a fight, he was going to get one.

"You wanna bet!"  
I threw myself at him, knocking him into the hard floor. Scrap pieces were flying everywhere.

Our fight continued rapidly.  
Thanks to my special abilities I was always a step ahead from him. All his fighting techniques were flashing through my mind just a few seconds before he would perform them. So we kept doing this little dance. Jump and avoid, jump and avoid. And that was frustrating him like hell. He kept hissing at me, trying to impress me or scare me away. But his attempts were useless to me.

I tried to keep him as far from Bella as possible. That creep wasn't going to touch my girl ever again. I smacked him multiple times against the walls making the ceiling break on several places. Big blocks of concrete were crashing down from the ceiling, making this an even more dangerous game then it already was. But James still hadn't back down. He wasn't going to give up. He looked for all different approaches to get me out of the way. And every attack I could easily avoid.

But then Bella made a strange sound that was distracting me just for a second. And James took his chance. He grabbed me by the neck and pushed me against the concrete wall. I tried to get away but he had me tidily trapped between the wall and his body. Where were the rest I thought. I arrived here first because I was the fastest of them all. But now was the perfect time for them to arrive. On the background I heard my Bella sobbing. James was laughing against my face.

"I told you that you wouldn't get her. Such a pathetic fool. Thinking that you could beat me. Maybe you're faster than the others, but not stronger. Now I'm going to kill you in front of her."

"No, don't you touch him!" "Bella cried.

"Shut up, bitch. This is your own fault. If you didn't ran away from me and hadn't messed around with this guy, your pretty boyfriend wouldn't be in this shit. Now, you need to suffer the consequences. Say goodbye to your sweet prince."

James punched my head once more into the wall and then threw me in the air. I landed a few meters away and saw James running toward me, ready to give me the final strike.

"NO EDWARD!"

And then something very strange happened. James was heading for me and made his leap. But then, in midair, he was thrown away. Like he had hit an invisible barrier. He recovered quickly, a bit confused, and tried it again. But just as before he couldn't reach me. Something was blocking his way. I quickly looked at Bella. She had her eyes straight on me but she didn't look surprised by this strange event. She looked determined, focused.

"You are not going to touch him." she said, her voice so different than usual.

It sounded so deep, so cold. This wasn't like her at all. James and I both stared at her, in total shock. Was she doing this? James didn't think twice. He snarled at her and started to run to her now.

"You little bitch! I had enough of you."

James his focus was now off of me and hastily I jumped at him. He started to scream and tried to get me off his back. But I wasn't going to let him go. This time, he was the one that was trapped. I opened my mouth and bit a part of his neck off of him. Screams of pain were filling the room. But I wasn't done with him yet. He was going to pay for his crimes against Bella. I slammed him into the wall and crushed both of his legs. He wasn't going anywhere. He crumbled beside the wall, holding his broken legs closely.

"Now look who's in trouble now. You're never going to hurt Bella anymore. You're never going to touch, smell or see her. You can go now to your Victoria. It's over, James. You're a dead man."

I first pulled his left arm off of his body soon to be followed by his right arm. He shrieked in pain. I waited a moment, staring at the monster that caused my girl and my family so much hurt, sadness and misery. But then I had enough and with one good slap I ripped his head off.

The shrieking had stop. In just a second everything went completely numb. I only could hear the silent snobs of Bella. She sat there, still bound against the wall. I ran quickly to her and took her head in my hands. She looked into my eyes and suddenly she started to cry hard. The tears were streaming from her eye corners and there was nothing to stop it. I took her in my arms and tried to calm her.

"It's all over, Bella. He's dead. He isn't going to hurt you anymore."

And then all of a sudden Emmett came bursting through the door, followed by Jasper, Alice and Carlisle. Carlisle and Alice came straight to us while Jasper and Emmett inspected the pieces that were left of James. Emmett groaned.

"I can't believe I missed a good fight. It's not fair, damn it! It's always the others who get all the fun."

"Emmett, stop whining and help Edward with these chains. We need to get Bella back home."

* * *

**Hey, an another chapter.  
And James is finally dead! I gave Edward the honor of killing this bastard. Just thought that he deserved it. No offense to the Alice fans.**  
**Hope that you like it. **  
**Please review. XXX**


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Epov

It was over, finally over. I kept repeating it in my head over and over again.  
I sometimes couldn't believe it. James was dead, slaughtered by my own hands. My Bella was safe and nothing or nobody would ever harm her again. She'd only been gone for three days but to me, it felt like three decades.

After the others had arrived at the steel factory, we swiftly released Bella from her chains and brought her back home, carrying her in my arms. Esme was so happy to see my Bella back, taking her immediately in her arms. The invisible tears were shining in her eyes. And her thoughts only contributed her expression.

**"Oh, I'm so glad that she's all right. I was so worried. Edward, I'm so relieved that you're all back home. We're hole again."**  
Everybody was relieved that Bella was back.

But the last few days had his effect on Bella. She had shut herself down again. Not like before but the first few days that Bella was back she acted very calm. She didn't talk much and mostly she sat in her room. She was still a bit shocked over what had happened, what was understandable.  
And she never left my side. Mostly we sat on her bed together, reading a book, listening to music or we just lay in each other's arms. But no matter what, we did everything together. It was like she had to remind herself that I was really there by touching me. And I understood Bella completely as I felt that same attraction towards her, wanting to have her with me at all times. And with days slipping by, Bella became more and more relaxed.

We sat in the family room, watching some action movie on the television. Bella was feeling a bit better, having processed the last events. I sat on the couch with Bella spread over it, her head on my lap. I liked it when she lay like that. That way I could easily stroke her soft hair. I was more interested in her hair then the movie itself. So it didn't bother me when Carlisle came into the room, breaking the little cocoon that I and Bella had created.

"I'm sorry to trouble you two but I was wandering if I could have a word with you?"

I knew that this conversation was coming. Ever since the attack Carlisle wanted to know what had happen at the factory. And I always postponed that talk because I was more concerned about Bella. But now the time had come to explain the matter.

"Of course. Not a problem."

I looked down at Bella who was also looking at me. She nodded, knowing what was coming and went sit up straight. Carlisle took his place in his seat.

"I think you know why I'm here." We both nodded.

"I don't want to act like a curious old man but…"

"Carlisle, you have a right to know what happened back there. You don't have to feel guilty." I said.  
I didn't want to hear Carlisle's apology. Because there was no need for that.

"Oke, so what happened when you arrived at the factory?"

He specifically asked me and not Bella to answer that question. He didn't want to remind Bella what had happen before that, knowing that it would bring back only bad memories. We could all guess what had happen.

"I saw James leaning over Bella, thinking the most despicable thoughts about her. I tackled him and we fought. I easily could avoid his attacks but then I was… distracted by something and James crashed me against the wall. I couldn't get away. He was going to kill me. He threw me against the floor and was going to attack when suddenly…"

I stopped not knowing how to explain this to Carlisle. Bella still sat beside me and took my hand, given me some extra support.  
"Yes. What happened next?"

"Well, he was going to attack me but then he was pushed away by something."  
Carlisle looked surprised by this strange change.

"Was there someone else in the room?"

"No, he jumped at me but then he was just slammed back. It was like he had hit an invisible barrier, like there was a jar placed around me. He just couldn't come near me."

Carlisle looked strange at me.  
"And where was Bella when this thing occurred?"

I looked at my girl. She stared at me, clearly wanting for me to continue.

"She still was hanging by those chains. She couldn't move a muscle. But when I looked at her, she had this strange glance. She was staring extremely at me. And one moment she said in a very deep and strange voice that he wasn't going to touch me."

Bella was surprised by this. She glanced very confused at me.

"Did I say that?"  
Now It was my turn to look surprised.

"You don't remember?"

"No, I just remember you fighting… him and that one moment you were both distracted and then you defeated him."  
We both stared at each other, not understanding what had happened.

"Carlisle, do you have any idea?"

"Actually I do. I think that however Bella has a special power."

We were both shocked but my girl clearly the most.  
"No, that's not true. I never had a special power."

"I think you did, Bella. The only problem was that you suppressed it. You didn't know you had a power because you buried it deep inside of you. From the beginning your life had been filled with pain, loss, misery and anger. The death of your parents, the torture of James, the struggling against the urge for blood,…. And because of those traumas you protected yourself from everything outside of you. You did everything to avoid more pain. And that's why you never discovered that you had a power."

"But what is her special power then Carlisle?"  
Carlisle leaned back in his chair, eyeing us both.

"I think that Bella's a shield."  
A shield? I had never considered that possibility. Probably because one: we all thought that Bella hadn't a power. And two: shields were a rare power.

"And why do you think that?"

"Isn't it obvious? Can't you see it, Edward? This explains a lot. Why you can't read Bella's mind or why can't Alice see her future? She is blocking both your powers."

"It still doesn't explain what has happened with James."

"I think I have an explanation for that too. Bella, when James was about to attack Edward, what were you thinking of? Try to remember. "

Bella looked a bit confused by this odd question.  
"Of Edward. I was thinking of Edward. Wishing that I could help him, protect him. I was scared and so angry!"

Carlisle looked pleased with this answer.

"Well, that confirms my theory. You see, when Bella feels a very strong emotion, without noticing it she pushes her shield away. That's why Alice had that vision of her. Bella was so scared and wanted so much that we were there. So the shield was lifted and Alice could see where she was. And when Bella saw you there, lying on the floor with James coming toward you, she got so angry that she created a shield around you, to protect you. It all makes sense now."

"So how is it that she doesn't remember this stuff?"

"She is still young. And as I said, she didn't even knew that she had a power. And maybe the shock has confused the memory a bit. But believe me when I tell you Bella is a shield."  
_

And indeed, my little Bella had a power, a great shield.  
After our conversation we started practicing. In the beginning it didn't went well. Bella had to try to push her shield away so that nobody could touch me. Just like she did in the factory. But after a few hours Bella still hadn't managed to protect me. And after some days it was started to frustrate her.  
But that was the key. By making her frustrated or angry the shield would be lifted more easily. So I used Emmett and Jasper to get Bella really annoyed, demanding them to attack me hard and doing everything to make Bella angry. Emmett was very pleased to help as he was still a bit disappointed that he had missed the fight with James.

**"Well, it's not the same as a real fight but I can at least push the crap out of you without you cheating. It's payback time, little brother."  
**  
He got a little carried away but this technique worked. Bella got so pissed she created a shield that pushed both of my brothers miles away from me, breaking Esme's garden furniture in the process.  
I was so proud of my girl. And as the days passed, she got better and better with controlling her power.  
After a month of continuously practicing, she could handle her shield, expanding it with ease.

Then we tried to learn Bella how to lift her shield so that it was possible for me to read her mind. That wasn't so easy than expanding her shield. After weeks we still hadn't been able to lift her shield. Just once I had been able to see a glimpse of her thoughts. Bella wasn't pleased that she couldn't handle this. But I had confidence in my girl and I told her so. She had to be patient. Because I knew that one day she would be capable of lifting her shield. We had years, decades to practice.

It was a beautiful day in the middle of May. The trees were getting there leafs back, the flowers were coloring the ground in several lovely colors and the birds were singing all their newest songs. Nature was showing her good looks. But the most beautiful thing was seeing my Bella laying in all of this. It was such a beautiful day that I decided to take my girl out to our little happy place.

The meadow that I found years ago. It was situated deep in the forest and a normal human wouldn't find this place easily. The meadow was my place to think and to come at peace. Large trees surrounded the little, round field and hundred wild flowers were popping out of the grass. Nearby you could hear a little stream passing. It was just perfect.

Bella was lying on her back, staring at the clouds that were floating by. She looked so stunning. Alice had kept her prisoner this morning but I have to say that she did her job well. Bella's hair was all shiny and the ends were curled. She was wearing a deep green dress today. It fitted her perfectly as always. It had a fitted bodice with a small cleavage, a wide skirt and around her waist she wore a tiny black belt. Absolutely breath-taking. Nature was no competition for her.

I was started to get a little nervous. I hadn't brought Bella here without a reason. Since she was back, I had this urge to ask her something. Something that could change our lives. This experience with James has taught me that without Bella I would be lost. A ghost, wondering alone on this planet without sense or reason. She was my life, my happiness and my joy. Bella was the one who closed the gap in my heart and I didn't want to lose her ever again.  
But every time I wanted to ask her, my guts took a leap and ran for it. I was always scared that she would be shocked or disgusted by my question. I didn't want to scare her away, not with my own stupidity or selfishness. One part of my heart was screaming to pop the question but the other part told me to just shut up and enjoy the time that we spent together. I was so confused.

"What are you thinking about, love?" a lovely voice said.  
I came back to earth and stared at my little girl. She had turned her head and was watching me very closely.

"Oh, nothing special."

"Don't you dare lying to me. I know that look. You are struggling with something. You're lucky that you don't get wrinkles."

I laughed at that. Somethimes it felt like Alice was sitting next to me when hearing such comments. "I'm glad I amuse you. But do I get to know the reason for those creases in your forehead?"  
I snuggled closer to my princess and took her hands in mine. I just loved the feeling of her skin against mine. Also it was a way to relax myself.

"I already told you that it's nothing."

"Please?"

God, now I was certain that she spent too much time with Alice. Those puppy eyes she could only have learned from that little pixie. And she probably knew that that trick worked on me. I sighed. She really wanted to know.

"Where do you see yourself in 15, maybe 20 years?"  
This question made her rise her eyebrows.

"I don't know. I never thought of that. But to be honest, I don't really care."  
Her answer surprised me. So she had no expectations, no dreams to fulfill. Nothing to look forward to.

"But as long it is with you, it will be perfect. The future that I always dreamed off." she said while showing me her gorgeous smile.

So she did have thought about it. As long she was with me, Bella would be happy. That idea sounded just right. I gathered all my courage together and went to sit straight. Bella followed my example, looking rather worried.

"Edward, what is it? You're acting a bit strange. Is there something wrong?" I grinned.

"No, there is absolutely nothing wrong. On the contrary, I never felt so happy in my life. It's just that I have to tell you something. Ask you something very important."

God, no wonder all the guys were so chicken shit when there were about to propose. This was harder than I thought. The nerves were trying to take control of me once more but that wasn't going to happen. Once again I took Bella's hand in mine and looked her straight in the eye.

"My dearest Bella. I know that you have been through a lot. You have seen and heard terrible things. But I assure you that all that is over. It's in the past and I want to start over with you… I always thought that I would end alone, becoming the only Cullen without a true love. But then you appeared rather spectacular in my life and I knew from the moment you stood there in the living room that I was lost."

Bella smirked at my words and slowly I could see the tears appear in her eyes.  
"You gave my life a reason, a purpose. I promise you that I will always be there for you. I will protect you, comfort and cherish you every second of my everlasting life."

I kneeled down on one knee and took my mother's engagement ring out of my pocket, placing it in front of Bella. It was a golden band with an oval face covered with little diamonds. I could hear Bella taking a deep breath.

"I love you with all my heart and I will always love you for all eternity. Bella, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Suddenly it was death silent in the meadow. There was no wind, no movement and no singing from the birds. If my heart was still beating it probably would have stopped now. Bella said nothing. She just stared at the ring in my hand, occasionally shifting her eyes to me. Finally after what seemed like hours, she looked at me again and started to speak.

"Are you serious, Edward?"

"I have never been so serious in my life. I want you to be my wife and I would love to become your husband. Bella, do you want to marry me?"

It remained silent for a few seconds but then an incredible smile appeared on Bella's face.  
"Yes, I would love to marry you!"

Yes, heaven did exist! My smile could have split my face in half when she said yes. I wanted to slip the ring on her finger but I wasn't given the chance.  
Bella attacked me, pushing me on the ground. She smashed her lips on mine, giving me a passionate kiss. She sucked on my upper lip while pushing her bottom lip between my lips. She knew how much I love her bottom lip. I quickly returned the kiss, anticipating this all day. She tangled her small fingers through my hair while I pulled her closer to me, draping my arms around her waist. And ever so slowly she deepened the kiss by pushing her tongue between my lips, asking for entrance which I granted her all too willingly.

We kissed for what seemed like an eternity. But when we released our lips, we grinned at each other, seeing the smiles on our faces. And I finally slip the ring on Bella's ring finger, claiming her as mine.

* * *

**Hey, next chapter is up. I hope you all like it.  
The story is almost completed. I'm working on it and I'll try to update soon.**  
**Please review. XXX**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Epov

Of course everybody was ecstatic that Bella and I were engaged.  
We weren't even arrived at the house before Alice came running towards us, capturing Bella and me in an almost bone-crushing huge. It still surprised me that such a small person could contain so much strength, even for a vampire. Soon the rest of the family turned up in the garden, congratulating us with the upcoming wedding.

Alice instant declared herself as the official wedding planner. Bella didn't stand a chance against Alice and her plans. She had it all already planned inside of her head even before I asked Bella to marry me. It was all settled. The flowers, the guest list, the cake, the music, the minister, my costume, Bella's dress… Alice already knew everything what she wanted.

At first, I didn't like the idea of Alice planning our wedding. It just felt wrong. This was Bella's feast, her big moment. It felt like Alice was running away with Bella's attention, like all the fun was taking away from her. Bella should have been the one to decide which color she wanted for the tablecloths, which flowers she wanted for her bouquet….But Bella guaranteed me that she was fine with the fact that Alice was coordinating the wedding. Mostly because she didn't know a thing about weddings. She trusted Alice.  
She only wanted to choose the wedding date. That was the only thing that she demanded to do. And Alice was delighted to fulfill Bella's request.

So on the 13the of August Bella and I were bound in holy matrimony.  
And I must say that Alice did her job well. She had decorated the house so perfectly. The house was decorated with multiple different flowers: orange blossoms ,lilac, roses, freesias… It smelled really good. They had remove all the furniture from the living room and replaced it with some hundred chairs garnished with white satin linen. And by the window Emmett had placed a arch which was also decorated with white flowers. Here and there some blue flowers were peeking out of the white bouquets. It was beautiful.

Of course Alice had gone a bit overboard with the guest list. Almost the whole population of Forks were sitting in our living room. It was ridiculous because more than half didn't knew me or Bella. But Alice stated that our wedding was the biggest event in the last 50 years. So everyone had to been there. I had preferred a bit less viewers but those thoughts were completely vanish when I saw Bella coming down the stairs with Carlisle by her side.

She looked magnificent, wonderful… She wore an ivory satin dress that was tied around the waist but got wider near the end. It had minimal beadings on the bodice and it had long see-through sleeves. Her hair was pulled up in a lovely bun and a shining hairband (decorated with little stones) was holding her long veil perfectly in place. Her bouquet was made of white roses, lilies and some blue flowers which I didn't know the name off. She was absolutely breath-taking. She looked a bit shy off all those people but once she found my eyes, she smiled a beautiful grin that made me smile all the more. It made my heart melt even more. And that smile never left mine our her face the entire ceremony.

It was a simple service. Nothing special as to a contrast of the bride and groom. And it surprised me to no end that Bella stayed so focused. My girl had always been very emotional; tears were often present with her. But during the ceremony Bella didn't cried once. Well, when I said 'I do' I noticed a single tear sliding down her cheek. And finally after waiting so long, the priest pronounced us husband and wife and I could kiss my girl for the first time as my wife. The moment our lips touched the whole room erupted with cheers and clapping. And I had the most difficulty to remove myself from my newly wife. Soon the ceremony space was transformed into a wedding reception.

We did the traditional things that were expected of us. We sliced the cake and fed each other without making funny faces. Bella threw the bouquet who was caught by Rosalie. God, that meant another extravagant wedding in the coming year. I removed Bella's garter from her thigh, with my teeth as the description said. This made Emmett and Jasper to howl and Bella to blush the most vivid red I had ever seen.

When the music started to play, I pulled Bella on the dance floor and took her in my arms. I had chosen 'She's the One' of Robbie Williams. Not a very original choice but it was just so appropriate for us. At least it was a much better choice than Alice's. She wanted 'Beauty and the Beast' for our wedding dance. Because it was so romantic. But I and Bella were against it. Because none of us was considering the other one the beast. So I took charge of the music.

" Are you enjoying yourself, Mrs. Cullen?" I asked. Bella giggled against my chest.

"What is it?"

"I'm just not used to my new name."

"No worries. You'll have for ever to get used to it."

We danced for so long; I was really enjoying this. Most of the time I danced with my girl. But of course Emmett had to have his moment with my wife. He stated that I was monopolizing the bride and she had to share at least one dance with her brother-in-law. So much drama for nothing. Because my girl was delighted to dance with Emmett. Remembering their last dance. I didn't like it particularly but who was I to deny her something. And yes, Emmett and Bella gave the people of Forks a show that definitely would be remembered. Just like last time they chose a fast dance. And it was good. Bella was lucky she didn't rip her dress while dancing. Because otherwise Alice would have killed her.

After their performance I quickly claimed my wife back. I was having the time of my life. But I lost track of time. So Alice dragged me and Bella from the dance floor so that we could depart for our honeymoon. We had to be in the airport within an hour, so we had to step on it. Bella was very curious of the destination. I kept it a secret, just to tease her a little. But I was confident that she would love the place that I had chosen.  
...

Island 'Esme' was coming into our vision. It looked so perfect with the sundown behind it. I had asked my parents if we could borrowed it for our honeymoon and Esme was all too happy to borrow her island for a few weeks. The island was a present of Carlisle to Esme. He had bought it many years ago, when there were newlyweds just like us.  
Bella was sitting at the top of the boat, scanning the area around her. She looked so happy. Water was splashing in her face, making her sparkle even more in the sunlight. It made me fall in love with her even more. Within 5 minutes we arrived at the island and I guided my wife (how I love that word) to the house that was situated on the beach a little bit further.

I showed her the house. The kitchen that was never used, the big living room with a unbelievable DVD collection and the several bedrooms. Esme had have the time of her life when she decorated this house. It really was beautiful. Every chamber had his theme and everywhere Esme's soft colors were present, perfectly match to each other. We were standing in the big white room now. I placed our suitcases on the bed, all four of them. One for me and three for Bella. Obviously Alice had packed for us and she went overboard (like always). Who needed three suitcases of clothes on a summer vacation? Sometimes I just couldn't believe that we lived under the same room and stayed so calm.

Bella was standing by the window, looking at the view. You could see the dark blue ocean, waves crashing against the white sand of the beach and the palm trees slowly waving their leafs. I left the luggage for what they were and went standing behind my wife, hugging her from behind.

"Do you like it here?"

"I love it. it's so beautiful and so Esme."

"I know. This house was like a attraction park for her. I just thought you would like it here."  
Bella turned around and lifted her head up, looking me deep in the eyes.

"Yes. This is perfect. Here we can just enjoy ourselves without to worry about exposure . Here, we have privacy. Here, we are… alone."

She stood on her tip-toes and gently kissed me. I returned the kiss swiftly, wanting to show her how much I loved her. I kissed her deep, feeling every curve and line of her lips. But then she lifted her hands up and started to unbutton the first two buttons of my shirt. This sudden action caused me to break the kiss which Bella clearly didn't like. She gave me that look of 'Why did you do that, you idiot?'

Trust me, I wanted her. I wanted to feel her naked body against mine, to touch her, to kiss her on places I wouldn't say aloud. I had thought about this a million times. But every time, James flashed through my head, the things that he had done to her. And I was afraid that making love to her would bring back the memories.

"Edward, what is it?"  
Bella looked a bit disappointed and a bit… hurt. She thought that I didn't want her. I wrapped my arms around her again and placed my head in the crook of her neck.

"My dear, I love you. I want you."

"I want you too Edward, so much. What's holding you back?"

"I don't want to hurt you. With everything that you have been through, I just can't…"

"Please, Edward. I want to know what it is. I want to know how it feels to make love to somebody, to you. Banish all the bad memories and give me new ones. Don't be afraid because I'm not. I trust you, my love."

And these words were my surrender. She wanted this as much as I wanted it. And who was I to reject her, especially on our wedding night.  
So I took her in my arms and laid her on the bed. And ever so slowly I leaned over her. I started to pepper her skin with kisses, beginning at her collarbone, to her neck all the way up to her ear. There I nibbled at her earlobe what caused her to moan. It was so sensual; it send an electric shock through my whole body what felt so good.

Bella started to get a little impatient with my slow approach. So she took my head between her hands and kissed me passionately. I sucked on her bottom lip while she nibbled on mine. Wanting to have her closer to me, I grabbed the back of her neck and pulled her even closer to me, smashing our noses together in the process. Bella on her turn moved one of her hands into my hair, waving her little soft fingers through my locks. I felt the tip of her tongue tracing the curve of my lips. She was asking for entrance, which I provided her eagerly. God, she tasted so good.

I continued my advances on her mouth while letting my hands linger down, over her curves. Slowly I made my way towards the back of her dress, letting my hands rest on the zipper. Bella felt my hesitation and broke the kiss for a moment. Instead she kissed her way up to my ear just like I did before and whispered in my ear: "Do it, Edward."

So I opened the dress and pulled it off her body. She looked so glorious, lying on the bed in just white laced underwear. It made me even harder. I let my fingers wander over her body, exploring every inch of her. In the meanwhile she started to unbutton my shirt. But halfway she got irritated and Bella just ripped the shirt off of me.

"Patience, my dear."

"I'm done with that. I want you now."

Obviously she didn't want to go slow. She straightened up and crashed her lips again on my mouth, much rougher than first. All too happy with this change, I plugged my tongue between her lips while removing her bra soon followed by her panties. Bella pulled me to her, wanting to have skin on skin contact. But man, that felt good! The feeling of her breasts, her erect nipples against my bare chest felt like heaven on a plate. And we were only starting. I looked at my wife, wanted to see her glorious body. And she was a real beauty. Smooth legs, perfect shaped breasts, slim arms… Not one mistake, perfection on his best.

Suddenly I felt Bella's hand at the waistband of my trousers, dangerously in the area of my throbbing member. And just like me, she hesitated a bit. Instead of speaking, I pushed my crotch into her hands, giving her permission to continue. Because if she didn't released me soon from those trousers, I was about to combust. Bella slipped her fingers underneath the waistband and pulled both my trousers and boxers off of my body. I was now completely exposed to her and just like I did, she explored my body very precise. She eyed me very carefully, letting her fingers wander from my neck to my chest, stomach to my thighs.

"Do you like what you see?" I asked, feeling a bit cocky from all her staring.

"Oh, absolutely. You can be sure of that."

She took my cock in her hand and took one long stroke. Man, that woman was going to kill me. I pushed her back against the mattress and crashed my lips on hers, letting my hands do their magic on her breasts while she worked me downstairs. We kissed, sucked and touched for a while, giving each other amazing pleasure with simple touches when I ended up between her legs. My hard member laid right for her opening, calling me to her. Bella grabbed me tightly, pushed me closer to her body.

"Are you sure, love?"

"Yes, I'm sure. You won't hurt me."

That was the only thing what I had to hear. And slowly I entered her. She was so tight, warm and wet. I had never felt anything like this before. Bella remained silent under me, trying to adjust to my length. I could see it wasn't too comfortable. But her expression told me not to stop. And when I was completely inside of her, I waited a moment, giving her some time to get used to me. But all too soon, she started to wiggle under me, giving me permission to move. So I moved myself in and out of her. In the beginning I tried to be gentle . I didn't want to hurt her in any possible way. This had to be a pleasant experience for her. Bella was looking beautiful, moaning beneath me. A fucking angel overwhelmed with desire and lust.

"Please, Edward. Harder, faster." she whimpered in my ear.

So, she wanted it harder. Well, I couldn't refuse her anything. So I pumped myself harder into her tight folds. Oh yes, she liked that a lot. Her moans and her breathing started to increase, filling the room with her soft cries. And that made me only grow harder and go faster. God, this felt so good. I had read books, saw movies and heard my brothers talk about it but nothing could have prepared me for this blissful pleasure. The feeling of my dick slipping inside of her; words couldn't describe it. Bella started to moan louder and louder. She was getting close; I could feel it.

"Oh Edward… I'm...I'm…"

"I know, love. Just let go."

I gave her one final thrust what made her come undone. She clenched against me, screaming my name in the heat of the moment. Seeing her reach an orgasm was the most erotic thing I ever had seen in my life. It made me lose it too and I exploded, releasing myself inside of her. I collapsed on Bella, breathing heavily. I was still coming down from my own amazing orgasm when I heard her giggle underneath me.

"May I ask what's so funny?"

"Nothing. I just love sex. Never knew it could be so divine."

"Yeah, you can definitely say that."

* * *

**Hey, next chapter is up. I hope you liked it.  
I made Bella a bit horny. A bit more sinful then she usually is in the story. Just like in the real books. And Edward is himself, doubting everything. **  
**It's almost over. Next chapter will be the last one.**

**Please review. XXX**


	18. Chapter 18

**Epilogue**

Epov

Many years later

"Edward, where are we going? You know I don't like secrets. Stop laughing! Just tell me where we are?"

I couldn't help it. I had to laugh. Bella was sometimes so clueless. In the many years that we were together she had changed so much.  
She grew more independent and less shy. She became also more talkative. She participated more in discussions what really pleased Carlisle. He and Bella often were having very deep conversations about medical illnesses. Bella had recently discovered her interest in medicines. So every time she discovered an interesting story, she discussed her ideas with Carlisle.

Also she became a bit bossier. Especially concerning her sexual needs. She found so many different ways to seduce me. But with two sisters and mistresses of seduction, it wasn't so hard to become such a professional as well. Besides I was always willing to get trapped in her sneaky plans.

Bella clearly enjoyed her life now. With time passing, her smile became more and more present on her little face. She became more and more use to have people around her as well. A couple of years after our marriage, we moved back to Alaska where she attended the University of Alaska. She did it so well, controlling her fear and studying foreign languages.

But on the other hand, some things couldn't be changed. Bella still had an aversion towards men and preferred to stay on a safe distant. With woman, there wasn't a single problem but men would always be a problem. And to be honest, I liked it that way. Because I didn't trust men around Bella. It wasn't very nice to think that but I just couldn't help it. Even though I could hear their innocent thoughts, I kept them away from Bella when necessary.  
And of course she still remained stubborn. At bit more than in former days. I often had to separate Alice and Bella when they were yet again discussing some particular clothing. They adored each other but on the subject of fashion my two little girls were the biggest enemies.

"Edward, stop dreaming! Just tell me where we're going?"

"Patience, my love. You will find out soon."

I had a surprise for my beloved wife.  
Even after so many years, she still was mourning over her parents. She didn't mention them but I knew it. I could see it in her eyes. Maybe her mind was still a mystery for me but over the years I learned to read her expressions.

So I went searching on the internet, looking for a couple that died in a fire several years ago. And after long searching I found something. A couple, a police officer and his wife that had died in a house fire. They had had a daughter but they had never found her body. The police had searched for a long time but after many weeks they just gave up. It was an unsolved, closed case. The time, place and descriptions seemed right so I was rather positive that these people were Bella's parents. And currently I was driving toward Phoenix.

It was late in the afternoon and when we arrived in Phoenix the sun was almost under. I easily found the cemetery that was situated in the east of the city. Also the smell of the deceased people wasn't very hard to locate. I parked close to the gate and I went to open Bella's door. She looked confused, still not knowing why or where we were.

"I have a surprise for you, my love. Come on, just follow me."

We entered the cemetery and I went searching rather determined for her parent's gravestone. It wasn't a big cemetery so after a few minutes I found the right grave. It was made of a simple black stone and there were white flowers planted in the front. Bella stood next to me, eyeing the names on the tombstone.

"Edward, are they…"  
I turned around and looked at my wife's confused face.

"Bella dear, these people are your parents. I thought that you disserved a chance to get to know them and to say a proper goodbye."  
Bella turned her head again toward the tomb and just stared at it.

It said: **Officer Charlie Swan and Renee Swan. Respected and loved, never forgotten.**  
Probably written by a friend of theirs. It was silent for a while before Bella started to speak.

"Hey mom. Hey dad. It's… me, Isabella. I don't know if you remember or recognize me but I'm your daughter…. Yeah, this is probably a big surprise for you that I'm still alive. But here I am. Jam… he kept me alive, the man that… murdered you. He wanted me as his companion, his girlfriend. That's why he…did it. It hurt, it really hurt. But it's over now. He's dead. I've gotten my revenge, sort of."

"I'm happy now. I have found a family that really cares about me. Carlisle and Esme are my adoptive parents now. And I can assure you, they take good care of me, treating me like a daughter of their own. I also have brothers and sisters now. I don't know if I had siblings in my human life but these are really fantastic. Rosalie and Alice are just amazing. Although I often have a fight with Alice about my dressing style. And Emmett and Jasper, ha. They are the best brothers a girl can wish for. Jasper is more the sensitive brother who can help you with everything. And Emmett is the one if you want to do something crazy or stupid. He's great. But don't worry. We don't over exaggerate. At least I don't."

I smirked at this. She was so right. Emmett just couldn't be subtle and he always had to go overboard. Bella had heard me laugh and squeezed my hand lightly.

"I'm also married, with Edward. Mom, you would have loved him. And dad, you would have approved the minute you saw him. He's just perfect. He loves me so much. He adores me and in his eyes I can't do anything wrong. He treats me like a princess. He protects me, listens to me and gives me everything that I want. I'm so spoilt with him. I now realize that I'm so lucky to have him as my husband."

My heart was swelling with every word she said about me. She really loved me and every day my love for her grew a little bit more. Even when I thought that it wasn't possible, my adoration towards my wife grew yet further. Sometimes I still thought that I was dreaming.

Suddenly I felt Bella squeezing my hand hard, like she was desperately holding on on something. I looked at her and saw the tears running down her cheeks.

"I miss you so much. Every freaking day! Mom, how many times I didn't wish that you were here with me, holding me in your arms. You had to be the one that comforted me in difficult times and taught me the facts of life. Dad, you had to be there to protect me from the bad things of the outside world. I wanted you to be the one that guided me down the aisle.  
This is so unfair! Why did this have to happen to us? Why did they take you away from me? You missed so much! If it weren't for that bastard, we would be still together. We would have lived our lives like it was meant to be. You two would have grown old, see me grow up and have a baby on my own. But now, you're gone and you have missed everything. I'm so sorry, so sorry for this."

It became too much for Bella and she collapsed on the ground. I quickly kneeled down and took her in my arms, trying to comfort her.  
I knew that something like this would happen. But I was convinced that it was still a good thing to bring her here. Now she knew at least who her parents were and could she release all those bad feelings that were floating around in her mind. She had to get it out. And now she did it. All the frustrations and anger that was killing her inside was finally released.  
We sat there for a while, just me with my mourning girl in my arms. After some time the crying started to decrease and changed into silent sobs.

"Bella, it's all right. Your parents understand you. You didn't choose this life. It was chosen for you by someone who didn't have the right. And I think that your parents didn't miss a thing of your life."  
I felt Bella's head moving up so I leaned a bit back to look into her blurry eyes.

"Why do you think that?"

"Well, because of you, I know now that there's a heaven somewhere. And I believe that your parents have watched you from there. They never left you; your loved ones never truly leave you. They are there, keeping a close eye on you. It's just sometimes hard to see them."

Bella just stared at me, taking in my words carefully. And then a little smile was making her way on to her delicate face. She turned her face again to the tombstone.  
"I told you mom and dad. He's just too good to be true. Always knows what to say."

I smirked and gave her a kiss on her head. In return she gave me a little peek on the lips back. We stood up and Bella turned toward the grave.

"Mother, father. I'm so glad that I found you. After all those years of blackness, I can at least give you a name. This isn't what I wished for but I hope that you're somehow proud of me, of what I have become. And I hope that one day, we will meet again. It will not be soon. But who knows what lies ahead of us. Goodbye mom and dad. I love you."

Bella kissed her fingertips and placed them on the names of her parents. She was saying goodbye. But before we left, I had to do one more thing.

"Thank you, sir and ma'am. Thank you for bringing this beautiful woman into this world. She is my everything and completes me in every possible way. She is the one shining star in the sky. I will take good care of her. I will love her until the end of time if not longer than that. That's a promise."

I took my wife by the hand and led her away from the grave, back to the car. Bella was clearly emotional touched by my words. I could see it in her eyes.

**"That was so sweet of you to do that."**

She had opened up her mind for me, just for a split second. But it was enough for me to hear her thoughts. I knew that it wasn't easy for her to do that. But this was her way to show me that she cared about me. I hugged her even closer to my body and kissed her forehead.

"I love you, Edward Cullen." she whispered.

"I love you too, Bella Cullen. More than anything, until my last breath."

And that was what I did, what I'm still doing.

* * *

**Hey, this is the last chapter. :-( I hope you liked it. **  
**I just want to thank all of you for reading my story and reviewing it.  
It's was my first long English story and it gave me great pleasure to hear that you all liked my story. And I hope that you will keep a eye out for future stories.**

**So this is last time i ask you to please review my story.  
Hopefully see you in my next story.  
XXXXXXXX**


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